Surrogacy made simple

SIMPLE SURROGACY HAS BEEN HELPING LGBT PEOPLE REALISE THEIR DREAMS OF PARENTHOOD SINCE 2002. DIRECTORS KRISTEN HANSON AND STEPHANIE SCOTT TALK TO PRIDE LIFE ABOUT THE SERVICES THEY OFFER

When was Simple Surrogacy founded and where are you based? Simple Surrogacy was founded in 2002 to assist couples and individuals with the desire to achieve a family through third-party assisted reproduction. We were founded on one simple principle: to provide our clients with the highest standard of care in the surrogacy and egg donation industry at an affordable price. Our team of professionals consists of Parents through surrogacy, current and former Surrogate Mothers and Egg Donors, and counsellors. While we are based in Dallas, Texas, we match and facilitate traditional and gestational surrogacy and egg donation arrangements with Surrogate Mothers residing throughout the United States and Canada. What services do you offer same-sex couples who are wanting to start a family? Simple Surrogacy is a full service Agency offering our clients every service they will need to get them to the delivery of their baby. Our services include providing a criminally and psychologically screened Surrogate, matching with beautiful, intelligent egg donors, then sending those individuals to screening at the clinic of your choice. We are happy to provide referrals to excellent reproductive clinics with high rates of success. We also refer you to experts in the field of reproductive law for your contracts, establish an insured escrow account, and manage all escrow services. Perhaps the most important thing that we do is be there for our clients and Surrogates to ensure smooth communication between all parties, so clients can relax and enjoy their pregnancy. How are Egg Donors and Surrogates screened and what criteria must they fulfil? Gestational Surrogates undergo a thorough screening process even before they are presented to clients for a potential match. Each Surrogate must fill out an extensive detailed profile, and submit to a criminal and financial background check. Once those are cleared, we collect medical records from all of her previous pregnancies, and have them reviewed by a reproductive endocrinologist. The Surrogates also have to pass a psychological evaluation. Once they are through that initial criteria, which less than 20% of our applicants pass, they are presented to Intended Parents for matching. After matching, the Surrogate will be sent to the Parent’s choice of clinic for thorough medical screening by their clinic. Donors also have an extensive profile to fill out, complete with testing scores, grades, and family medical history spanning all known genetic conditions. The donors also submit photographs, spanning from childhood through to adulthood. Once chosen, donors go in for further screening at the Parent’s clinic of choice. This screening usually involves testing to ensure egg supply, and psychological testing for suitability as a donor. How long does it take on average to find a suitable Surrogate? That depends on the clients. We have clients who match in less than a week, and we have some who take longer to match because they have particular requirements. The average time is three months from signing to matching. However, SPAR (a program that enables HIVpositive men to use their semen for an IVF pregnancy) clients and those with special request may take longer. Are Intended Parents also screened and what criteria should they fulfil? Yes, Intended Parents are also screened. They must pass a background check to ensure there is no criminal history that would impede their legal process, they also pass a psychological evaluation to ensure they are suitable to be Parents. At their clinic, they will have medical testing and sexually-transmitted disease testing as well.

“We do see many single

fathers who simply aren’t prepared to wait

for their perfect husband and want a child of their own”

What success rate does Simple Surrogacy enjoy? More than 90% of our Parents leave our program with a child or children, and we have a 35% rate of return clients. We will never give up on you having a baby, we will keep working to achieve your dream of family as long as it takes. Are they any things which LGBT people must particularly take into consideration when choosing surrogacy? Legally, they must ensure that they are matched in a state that will give them the necessary outcome. To make sure that they are, they need to partner with an Agency whose understanding of the laws nationwide in the United States is excellent. They also need to ensure that they have chosen a LGBT family clinic and Agency, as some are friendlier than others. Is there a typical LGBT person who makes use of your services? We do see many single fathers who simply aren’t prepared to wait for their perfect husband and want a child of their own. We also see often couples who have tried other ways to have a child before (for example, Indian or Mexican