Concierge Surrogacy Services for LGBTQ Families
So you want to grow your family through surrogacy? Fantastic! It’s an incredible life-changing experience. Finding the right woman to carry your child is an extremely important part of the journey. There are two ways you can find your perfect match. You can use a surrogate matching agency, like New England Surrogacy, or you can self match. Self matching is great if you have a family member or friend who is willing to carry the baby for you, which is the situation that Amanda, our New England Business Manager had. Or, if you are able to connect with a stranger, like our Montana Surrogacy intake coordinator, Amber, did, you can self match. So, which one do you do? And are you completely on your own if you self match?
A surrogacy matching agency can help manage everything from start to finish, including providing screened gestational carrier candidates, but many also provide concierge surrogacy services. These services would be for intended parents who already have someone whom they trust as a gestational carrier but may want some help managing all of the other moving parts (and trust us, there are a LOT of moving parts) of the journey. This allows you to rest assured that the details are covered, giving you the ability to focus on growing your family. So what kind of things can an agency offer in terms of concierge services?
New England Surrogacy offers the following:
Background Checks All Around
Just like the gestational carriers in our full service matching program, we will conduct a full background check on your gestational carrier and her spouse, partner or any adults living in her home. You get to join the fun, too! In addition to the background checks, we will send your gestational carrier and her partner to a psychological assessment and you will be provided a psychological counseling session to help you more fully understand the process you are all undertaking.
Medical Screenings
If you don’t already have your gestational carrier’s medical records, we will assist with gathering her records and submitting them to your chosen fertility doctor. Medical screenings also precede the legal agreement with your surrogate. We’ll help arrange those appointments, too!
Insurance (maybe not the most fun, but so important)
Insurance is a complicated issue when it comes to surrogacy journeys. Most insurance providers do not cover IVF (unless you are fortunate enough to work for a few large companies like Google, Facebook or American Express!). Those costs tend to be out of pocket. The maternity and delivery costs of your surrogate, however, are important to have covered by insurance. It’s possible your surrogate has insurance already that does not include a surrogacy exclusion, lien, or other surrogacy-unfriendly language. We help figure that out with you. And if her insurance is unfriendly, we help you with exploring other insurance options.
The Surrogacy Agreement
The legal agreement with your surrogate (and her spouse, if applicable) ensures that the best interests of all parties are represented. An attorney licensed in the state your gestational carrier lives and will give birth, specializing in assisted reproductive technology law represents you, as intended parents, and drafts the agreement. Your surrogate also has legal representation. Under the Concierge Services Agreement these fees are all included, so no large surprises!
Escrow (a new baby and a new house have something in common!)
Most intended parents and surrogates on this journey together like to take money out of the equation. The involvement of an escrow manager allows all costs and expenses agreed to in the legal agreement to be paid automatically by a third-party. We provide escrow services for you as part of the Concierge Fee (but we don’t hold the funds ourselves – we leave that to the professionals!). That way you can forget about money and finances and just focus on the baby!
Baby's Beginning: The IVF Process
A licensed reproductive endocrinologist oversees and manages the in vitro fertilization and embryo transfer in their IVF clinic. We coordinate the IVF process with your clinic. Your surrogate’s travel expenses over 75 miles are your responsibility. If you do not have a relationship with a clinic, we can recommend several excellent clinics in the New England area. Regardless of where the IVF occurs, we’re involved as much or as little as you wish.
Support Through The Pregnancy
Yay, the news you’ve been waiting for! We offer support throughout the pregnancy as you and your surrogate prepare for the baby’s arrival. Schedules, medical appointments, insurance guidance—we’re available to help when and how we can, just say the word. We also communicate with the hospital to be sure everyone is on the same page and supported. We even have a cute sign for the hospital room door explaining that this is a surrogacy birth and medical questions involving the baby should be directed to the intended parents.
Legal Documents
Your legal team files the documents with the court that establish or affirm your parental rights and stipulate that your name(s) appear on the birth certificate from the start, which is especially important for LGBTQ families. If you live abroad, we can assist with the required legal documents and passports and coordinate the efforts to bring your baby home. Please note that international intended parents will want to consult with an attorney in your home country regarding any residency or citizenship requirements for a U.S. surrogate-born child.
Baby’s Arrival
A concierge service can also help out with things at the hospital once it’s time for baby’s arrival. It can be a confusing time for the staff, especially if the hospital has never dealt with surrogacy before, and concierge services can make sure it is a wonderful and smooth experience for intended parents and carrier.
Whether you choose to use an agency for 100% of the surrogacy process or just concierge services, the surrogacy journey can be overwhelming without some help, and we want you to feel secure every step of the way. For more information on New England Surrogacy’s concierge services, check out our concierge services costs. Contact a member of our team for a free consultation to ask about our individualized concierge services.