Surrogate Mother Ethical Dilemmas
Surrogate Mothers and Ethical Dilemmas
Kimberly G. Manning
Carlow University Surrogate Mothers and Ethical Dilemmas Few options exist for same-sex partners or heterosexual partners unable to bear children when deciding to have a child. A couple may adopt, but if they want a biological child, the couple must employ a surrogate mother. Two types of surrogacy exist. Gestational surrogacy involves extracting an egg and sperm from donors and placing the fertilized egg into the surrogate’s uterus. This procedure proves to be very expensive, and the resulting child proves not to be biologically related to the surrogate. The sperm used may be from a male within the employing couple, or it may be provided by a donor. The egg may be extracted …show more content…
In the beginning of a surrogacy, the woman acting as the surrogate mother must meet with legal counsel in order to review her rights as a surrogate as well as the rights of the infertile couple. Usually, surrogacy requires the woman to give up her rights when acting as a surrogate mother. This opposes the outcomes of the women’s rights case, Roe v. Wade, which “gave strength to a woman’s right to privacy in the context of matters relating to her own body, including how a pregnancy would end” (Pozgar, 2016, p. 80). Therefore, when a surrogate mother enters into a contract with an infertile couple, she no longer receives the right to privacy or the right to deciding the outcome of the pregnancy. But, this raises the ethical issue of abortion. Does a surrogate mother maintain the right to abort the child? A surrogacy contract states that the surrogate no longer fosters the right to decide the outcome of the pregnancy, but this stands in opposition to a woman’s right to choose what happens to her own body and her pregnancy. Furthermore, the infertile woman may accompany the surrogate mother to certain medical examinations and tests. This also opposes the …show more content…
Some view this payment as a type of prostitution, and “surrogacy is decried as exploitation of a woman’s body, as classist and sexist, and the marketing of babies” (Abrams, 2015). Usually, during the contract process the infertile couple must state the amount of money being paid to the surrogate and the intended uses for which the money is meant. Sometimes the law restricts the money to be used for medical fees, cost of living, and legal fees. If any issues arise with the compensation of a surrogate mother, the problems must be reported. If the court finds any compensation to be out of order, some states may see the arrangement as baby-selling or prostitution, and jail time may even be
Kimberly G. Manning
Carlow University Surrogate Mothers and Ethical Dilemmas Few options exist for same-sex partners or heterosexual partners unable to bear children when deciding to have a child. A couple may adopt, but if they want a biological child, the couple must employ a surrogate mother. Two types of surrogacy exist. Gestational surrogacy involves extracting an egg and sperm from donors and placing the fertilized egg into the surrogate’s uterus. This procedure proves to be very expensive, and the resulting child proves not to be biologically related to the surrogate. The sperm used may be from a male within the employing couple, or it may be provided by a donor. The egg may be extracted …show more content…
In the beginning of a surrogacy, the woman acting as the surrogate mother must meet with legal counsel in order to review her rights as a surrogate as well as the rights of the infertile couple. Usually, surrogacy requires the woman to give up her rights when acting as a surrogate mother. This opposes the outcomes of the women’s rights case, Roe v. Wade, which “gave strength to a woman’s right to privacy in the context of matters relating to her own body, including how a pregnancy would end” (Pozgar, 2016, p. 80). Therefore, when a surrogate mother enters into a contract with an infertile couple, she no longer receives the right to privacy or the right to deciding the outcome of the pregnancy. But, this raises the ethical issue of abortion. Does a surrogate mother maintain the right to abort the child? A surrogacy contract states that the surrogate no longer fosters the right to decide the outcome of the pregnancy, but this stands in opposition to a woman’s right to choose what happens to her own body and her pregnancy. Furthermore, the infertile woman may accompany the surrogate mother to certain medical examinations and tests. This also opposes the …show more content…
Some view this payment as a type of prostitution, and “surrogacy is decried as exploitation of a woman’s body, as classist and sexist, and the marketing of babies” (Abrams, 2015). Usually, during the contract process the infertile couple must state the amount of money being paid to the surrogate and the intended uses for which the money is meant. Sometimes the law restricts the money to be used for medical fees, cost of living, and legal fees. If any issues arise with the compensation of a surrogate mother, the problems must be reported. If the court finds any compensation to be out of order, some states may see the arrangement as baby-selling or prostitution, and jail time may even be