Egg donation – and its compensation in particular – has been a touchy topic in the United Kingdom for as long as it’s been scientifically possible, but a decision made yesterday by the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority (HFEA) is a major step in the right direction.
Now, egg donors will be compensated a fixed fee of 750 pounds (approximately $1200) for loss of earnings, expenses, and to “recognize their gift,” according to an article published in The Telegraph. In recent years UK egg donors could be reimbursed up to 250 pounds for expenses, but the shortage of donors in comparison to the demand drove intended parents abroad, eventually forcing authorities to reconsider their stance on compensation. Historically, many egg donors in the UK haven’t received any compensation at all, as this is how authorities deemed egg donation would remain an “altruistic” act.
While we believe all donors participate, ultimately, for altruistic reasons, the fact is that the process is far from easy. It is time intensive and a huge commitment, both physically and emotionally. Women want to help, but shouldn’t be expected to take major financial blows for transportation, childcare, loss of wages, and other expenses involved. Here in the United States, donors are compensated for their time and effort – not for the eggs themselves. With the help of the American Society for Reproductive Medicine, reputable agencies like ConceiveAbilities follow strict guidelines regarding compensation.
The new compensation model in the UK is actually based on systems currently used in Denmark and Spain, and includes new rules for sperm donors as well. They also left an agreement that egg sharing – where donors can receive their own fertility treatment for free or at a lesser cost in return for their donation – would remain unchanged.
The HFEA will likely revisit the topic in the future. Policy officer Danielle Hamm, who assisted in the decision, admitted, “This is not an exact science, it’s a judgment.”
What do you think? Is the new law enough to boost egg donation in the UK, or will donors and intended parents alike continue to look abroad in order to participate in the process? You can read more about this developing story here.
It goes without saying that certain aspects of assisted reproduction can be a bit tricky, but one – the issue of donor anonymity – has moved to the forefront of our industry discussion recently. A recent NPR blog broached this complicated topic through the eyes of several donor-conceived women and their efforts to find the identity of the men who donated the sperm that help create them. These women are not the only ones taking this path. We’ve seen a notable increase in the number of participants, on both sides of this relationship, who are interested in (or at least open to) future contact. In fact, some donors are even willing to meet with their recipient during the cycle.
I think it might be surprising to some that most donor-conceived children search for their donors mainly for the biological link. They report the three main reasons as curiosity about donor characteristics, medical reasons, and just wanting the experience of meeting the donor. In fact, one of the women highlighted in this NPR story noted that in addition to a sense of loss, she felt there was an obvious irony to this situation: “Couples use donor sperm or egg because they very much want at least some biological connection to their child.” And yet, she says, “by using anonymous donors they cut off that child’s other links.”
As more and more donor-conceived adult children seek out their donors, it’s imperative that donors and recipients work with reputable agencies who not only educate all parties about anonymity and how laws can and likely will change in the future, but to help navigate the complexities of this issue in a way that respects and protects everyone involved.
Obviously, this issue is still working itself out. I’m interested in what you think about it, so please share your thoughts.
For decades, anonymity has been the hallmark of egg and sperm donation. Like most agencies, we take great care to protect the identities of our donors and recipients and establish a direct agreement between parties to ensure the desired degree of privacy of all parties involved. A new law in Washington, though, makes it the first state to change the “rules.” It will now guarantee that children who are conceived with the help of egg donation agencies and sperm banks in Washington have access to their donors’ full name and medical history. Unless the donor specifically opts out of this agreement to be identified, the information will be available to the child when he or she turns 18.
It’s a controversial concept, particularly considering what the standard has been for so many years. Unlike adoption, where open relationships have become quite common, the act of “donating” is often viewed as something that is done anonymously – like blood and organ donations. But in a Time.com article last week, law professor Julie Shapiro notes that “there is an emerging sense that it’s a problem for children and it’s a problem for donors. They have regrets.”
We are finding that more and more intended parents want to provide this option for their future child. It’s not so much about identity now, but rather to answer questions about their genetic origins later. And donors tend to respond in kind. While they’re not necessarily looking to share personal information, they may be able to see it from the recipients’ perspective and agree to be identified in the future. The law in Washington is clarifying something that is already happening in many legal documents around the country – the donor must confirm that she is open to the potential of future contact, should the child desire it.
In the field of third party reproduction, laws are constantly evolving. Donor anonymity will continue to be a delicate aspect of the legal process, and none of us – states included – should be the final judge of what is right for each donor match.
Read more about the new law and its implications at Time.com.
ConceiveAbilities was honored to be a first time exhibitor attending the 24th Annual In Vitro Fertilization and Embryo Transfer Conference. Santa Barbara provided an intimate setting for physicians and embryologists around the globe to present the most current research in the field of ART. Unlike many of the other well-attended and expansive conferences such as ASRM and ESHRE, the UCLA conference afforded us more of an opportunity to meet and become acquainted with such respected leaders in infertility.
It was a privilege to share the key components of our egg donation and surrogacy programs and to stay up-to-date regarding the challenges practices often face in guiding patients through the collaborative third party maze. We understand the importance of practices partnering with experienced, responsible agencies like ConceiveAbilities in order to grow in this rapidly changing field. We look forward to more opportunities to share and discuss ways we can assist doctors and their patients, and are truly grateful for the time we were able to spend with so many of these remarkable professionals.
“Infertility stinks. It is the worst thing in the world.”
Giuliana Rancic, television personality and guest co-host of last Friday’s special episode of The View, expressed the opinion of so many when she shared her own struggle to have a child. In an hour that focused primarily on surrogacy, the show took a look at alternative approaches to family building and included experts, celebrities, and every day couples sharing their advice and stories. Co-host Sherri Shepherd even disclosed that she is considering using a surrogate in the future after a difficult first pregnancy, when she delivered her son nearly four months prematurely.
After a five year attempt to become pregnant with IVF, Alexis Stewart discussed the difficult decision to turn to surrogacy. Her sage advice? “Someone else should do the screening,” she said. Sanford Bernardo, an east coast surrogacy legal expert, agreed and encouraged intended parents to work with a responsible program in order to find a suitable candidate. In spite of frustrating, inevitable “ups and downs” along the way, Stewart’s journey led to the birth of her daughter earlier this year.
Later in the show, Melanie and Michael Thernstrom introduced us to their “twiblings.” With the help of an egg donor and not one but two different gestational surrogates, the brother and sister were born just days apart. Another unique aspect of their story is the fact that they remain close with both surrogates a couple of years later. “Our kids wouldn’t exist without the generosity of these women,” Melanie said. “They exist because of the generosity of strangers, and they too can do something to really help other people.”
Michael admitted that it is a “strange thing to bring strangers into this very intimate part of your life. By far the scariest part was the part before we met them. Once we met them – this is true with the egg donor too – they’re wonderful people. The kind of people you’d want to entrust this incredible trust to.”
Both of the Thernstrom’s surrogates shared a bit about their experiences as well. “It’s been a blessing,” Fie said. “It’s added something special to our lives.”
The hosts did pose an important question to the Thernstroms, something that all intended parents using third party assistance will likely face – jealousy. “Maybe I would feel this way,” Rancic admitted. “I’m missing from this equation.”
Melanie’s response? “I had come to terms with my infertility. I had a long period of failure to do that,” she explained. “I think once you do that, feeling jealous is like – you’re drowning and someone’s rescuing you. Are you jealous that they’re a better swimmer? They’re saving your life.” What an amazing analogy for the selfless gift of life surrogates and egg donors provide!
We thought it was a job well done, sharing different perspectives and attitudes on a very complex, highly emotional and controversial topic. What do you think? Was it an accurate depiction of what recipients and surrogates go through during this process? Could it change the average viewer’s idea of what surrogacy is all about? We’d love to hear your thoughts.
A sigh of relief went through the ConceiveAbilities office this week when the Medical Board of California revoked Dr. Michael Kamrava’s license. Kamrava, of course, is most famously known as “Octo Mom” Nadya Suleman’s fertility specialist. He has also been the trigger for much-needed conversation in the field of reproductive medicine. What is responsible embryo transfer? How many is too many? For someone who is desperate for a child and a team that genuinely wants to help their patient, it can be a true ethical dilemma.
Ultimately, the goal should be to have one healthy child. While IVF always increases the chance of multiples, it is essential for patients to be well-educated and informed about the risk for both mom and babies in a multi-fetal pregnancy. These risks don’t just include pregnancy and delivery complications – consequences can be life long for the children born as a result.
While there are currently no laws preventing doctors from implanting multiple embryos, we hope that this week’s decision will keep the discussion going. We’re pleased that organizations like The American Society for Reproductive Medicine and the Society of Assisted Reproductive Technologies have developed strong guidelines for embryo transfer. And we’re proud to say that, as one of the nation’s leading agencies for egg donation and surrogacy, we follow their lead. When it comes to choosing an agency to partner with, whether as an intended parent, donor, or surrogate, you must be able to trust their commitment to responsibility.
What do you think? What is ethical, responsible balance in the world of reproductive medicine? We’d love to hear your thoughts!
The recent additions to Elton John’s and Nicole Kidman’s families via gestational surrogate has sparked a renewed interest in the process around the globe. We’re thrilled more people are being educated about family building options – but you may be surprised to learn that “compensated” surrogacy is actually illegal in some countries like Australia, where a law was passed in November to further deter prospective parents from considering this approach.
The NSW (New South Wales) Surrogacy Act threatens those who pay for a surrogate, either at home or abroad, with up to 2 years in jail and $110,000 in fines. It’s incredibly discouraging to see more roadblocks for people already struggling to have children – now, they risk facing prosecution for using alternative approaches. Many legal experts suspect the new law will ultimately cause people to lie about their children’s births in order to protect their families and are encouraging State Parliament to reconsider.
On a more promising note, a Family Court out of Melbourne, Australia recently granted a gay couple who have twins through surrogacy a major victory – full parental rights for the father not genetically linked to the children. Our hope is that this decision will pave the way for other same-sex parents in Australia and around the world to build their families using alternative options without fear and added stress. As Justice Paul Cronin pointed out, “As a matter of law, the word ‘parent’ tends to suggest some biological connection, but…biology does not really matter; it is all about parental responsibility.” He added, “In this case, the children do not have the benefit of a mother, but they have the good fortune of having two fathers.”
I’m just back from the annual ASRM conference and have some good information from the event that I’ll be sharing in the next few days.
First, though, I just wanted to take a quick moment to acknowledge the ASRM for its recent decision to expel the physician at the center of the “Octomom” story.
In case there are one or two people in America not familiar with this story, Nadya Suleman (dubbed Octomom) reported that Dr. Michael Kamrave of Beverly Hills implanted six embryos in her uterus last year. That exceeds national guidelines for a woman of her age. However, the ASRM based this decision not solely on his work with a single patient, but his type of practice over the last several years.
The situation (and media circus that surrounded it) brought to the forefront a lot of questions around IVF and other advanced reproduction treatments and ethical boundaries for both medical professionals and intended parents. As a self-regulated industry, we have to hold ourselves and our contemporaries to the highest ethical standards and that is exactly what the ASRM did this week when it voted Dr. Kamrava out of the organization.
There are several good reasons behind the rise in international intended parents coming to the U.S. for infertility treatment. Not the least of which is an extremely limited egg donor pool in places where donor compensation is either not allowed or capped at practically nothing. In a heated and ongoing debate, British Authorities are now reconsidering the ban on paying egg and sperm donors to persuade more, and higher-quality, donors to come forward. The other side of the debate argues that increasing egg donor and other compensation can be a slippery slope eventually commoditizing the human body.
I was recently invited into this debate by the BBC. I discussed the issue on the evening edition of their Newshour radio program.
Obviously, in the U.S., we understand that properly compensating women for making this physical and emotional sacrifice, takes nothing away from the gift itself. The argument being made against appropriate compensation seems to be either that industry professionals are unable to thoroughly educate and counsel donors or that young women lack the capacity to make informed clear decisions so that a little bit of money becomes “coercive”.
This is hard for me to swallow on just about every front. I’ve found that properly educating potential egg donors and surrogates on the level of commitment and involvement that comes with the egg donation or surrogacy process automatically weeds out anyone who might be considering doing it just for the money. Additionally, the psychological screening done at reputable agencies filters out those focused only on compensation. In my experience with reputable egg donation and surrogacy agencies, fertility clinics and medical professionals across the country, I have yet to encounter anything less than thorough and ethical screening standards.
I’m not sure what to say about the second argument except that once through a proper screening process with a clear understanding of the commitments that go along with becoming a donor, I’ve never seen a woman put herself through it for the money alone.
Recent coverage of celebrities with fertility challenges has helped shine a light on advanced reproductive technologies. A recent US News & World Report blog discusses egg donation and mentions the Donor Network Alliance (DNA).
All Things Conceivable is a blog dedicated to sharing the knowledge and expert opinion of Nazca Fontes, founder and president of ConceiveAbilities, a Chicago-based surrogacy and egg donation agency. Our goal is to provide information about egg donation, surrogacy and infertility as well as facilitating discussions around recent news, trends, new technologies and industry developments on those topics.
All Things Conceivable is a blog dedicated to providing intended parents, egg donors, and surrogate mothers with valuable insights into egg donation, surrogacy & infertility. Nazca Fontes, founder and president of Chicago-based ConceiveAbilities, is our primary contributor, sharing a wealth of knowledge cultivated in her years as leader in her field. ConceiveAbilities serves an international clientele and provides third party reproductive services, including a world-class egg donation program and a growing surrogacy program. ConceiveAbilities works with fertility centers and clinics throughout the U.S. and around the world.
All Things Conceivable is a blog dedicated to sharing the knowledge and expert opinion of Nazca Fontes, founder and president of ConceiveAbilities, a Chicago-based surrogacy and egg donation agency. Our goal is to provide information about egg donation, surrogacy and infertility as well as facilitating discussions around recent news, trends, new technologies and industry developments on those topics.