While many people who decide to start a family do so the traditional way, with the woman allowing herself to become pregnant, that’s not an option for everyone. Some couples have serious medical obstacles standing in the way, such as past surgery or medical conditions that make it either dangerous or impossible to conceive a child naturally.
In the modern age, however, some alternatives can circumvent this. Surrogacy is one such solution, but it is both time and money-intensive, which can often lead people to wonder if there are ways to secure an affordable surrogacy. While all types of surrogacy do require a financial investment, some choices may reduce the overall burden.
Altruistic Surrogacy
One of the most cost-effective ways to have a more affordable surrogacy experience is to have an altruistic surrogacy. The more expensive option, “compensated surrogacy,” involves providing significant financial recognition to the surrogate mother herself. In the United States, this typically runs in the tens of thousands of dollars. This is usually in addition to funding for medical and living expenses as the pregnancy progresses.
The other option, which is far less expensive, is “altruistic surrogacy.” Here, the woman volunteers to become pregnant with no expectation of payment. Living and medical expenses are usually still covered by the couple, as it is unfair to expect a surrogate mother to work and pay for her own medical treatment when she is undertaking such a generous act for a couple. However, it should come as no surprise that women willing to volunteer for this role are rare, so while this is a much lower-cost alternative, it may also mean a wait of months or even years for the right volunteer surrogate mother to arrive.
Traditional Surrogacy
Another choice that couples can make that is more budget-friendly for family planning is going with traditional rather than gestational surrogacy. Gestational surrogacy is incredibly popular today because it allows hopeful parents to have a “true” direct genetic descendant. Using a technique known as In Vitro Fertilization, or IVF, donated sperm and egg are fertilized in a lab and then implanted in the surrogate mother. Genetically, the child that is born is a 50/50 DNA mix of the hopeful parents, exactly as in traditional childbirth. This medical technique is, however, more expensive.
Traditional surrogacy uses the egg of the surrogate mother herself. Through the much simpler process of artificial insemination, donated sperm is deposited in the surrogate mother’s uterus, and natural fertilization occurs. This is an extremely simple and well-established technique, to the point that some people have tried it at home themselves with varying degrees of success. However, the important factor here is that for a drastic reduction in cost, traditional surrogacy is much more budget-friendly but sacrifices the ability of hopeful parents to have a true, direct genetic descendant.
Going Abroad
A final option that hopeful families can consider for surrogacy on more of a budget—especially for those in the United States—is going abroad. While the USA has world-class medical facilities, it is not the only country that provides that access. In North America, both Canada and Mexico can offer a similar level of quality, while in Europe, many nations, such as Georgia, also have world-class fertility and medical organizations.
This may seem counterintuitive since going abroad does mean spending money on travel and accommodation. However, especially in the case of countries like Georgia, the difference between the American dollar exchange with local currency means that the dollar goes a much longer way in these countries than it would on domestic surrogacy options.
That increased spending power means that techniques and surrogacy preferences that might have formerly been out of reach, such as compensated surrogacies or gestational surrogacy using IVF, are now more attainable. A surrogate mother seeking compensation in a country like Georgia will not require, at minimum, USD$30000 as would be the case in a state such as California. Similarly, even with world-class medical equipment and experienced staff, a Georgia fertility clinic wouldn’t command the same prices as a similar organization in the United States despite offering an equivalent level of care and results.
This combination of lower pricing and increased spending power due to currency conversion can offset the expenditure of travel, often by significant margins. In today’s digital age, it’s even possible to reduce the number of trips required, thanks to video conferencing, phone calls and other means of communication, so couples can minimize travel to once when meeting the surrogate and once more when the time of birth arrives.
In some cases, even more value can be gained by working with the right surrogacy agency. These more comprehensive services can “bundle” everything from medical care to legal work into one convenient package for increased savings, reducing both the time and the investment required to negotiate various stages and services.