Making Surrogacy Affordable for Intended Parents

Although it is unreasonable to put a price on creating a family, it is fair to say that the surrogacy process is financially challenging for most, if not all, intended parents. At Capital Surrogacy, we understand the large financial investment that you are making in growing your family.

The surrogacy process tends to be expensive because it takes a large number of dedicated professionals to bring about a successful outcome. Our overarching recommendation is to be sensible and fiscally responsible when selecting and financing each and every step of your surrogacy journey. If you are cautious and knowledgeable when choosing each essential element of your surrogacy journey, it is very likely that the incremental cost savings from each expense will yield significant savings at the end. In other words, you can “chip away” at expenses in a strategic manner and realize your dream while also having significant savings.

Key areas to consider in surrogacy journey cost savings:

• Surrogacy agency and legal representation fees – There is a wide range of pricing for both services, yet a higher price does not necessarily mean better services. Often smaller surrogacy agencies have lower fees, but provide quality services, and may have even more personalized case management. At Capital Surrogacy, we are in the lower end of pricing for journey coordination services. Our surrogacy agency also provides discounted legal services with the Kinsey Law Group, P.C. that benefits our intended parents.
• Surrogate compensation – There are many critical characteristics to consider when choosing a surrogate, at the very top of the list being compatibility with your own surrogacy plans and a genuine connection with you. Nonetheless, there are financial advantages to matching with a surrogate that is seeking more moderate base compensation – perhaps because she is a first-time surrogate. Other cost savings are realized if she has surrogacy friendly insurance, or if she is a stay-at-home mother and does not need compensation for lost wages, or if she lives near your IVF clinic (for reducing screening or transfer travel costs) or near your place of residence (to reduce travel costs at delivery). Once again, compatibility should be much more important than these factors, but they are variables in reducing surrogate compensation costs.
• IVF clinic – Another piece to consider is the IVF clinic cost which like surrogacy agency fees, can range significantly, and careful consideration should be given in selecting a clinic. One assurance for this journey piece is signing up for Shared Risk or IVF Refund Programs for either IVF or donor cycles. These programs may help you recover the costs if unfortunately, treatments are not successful. You pay upfront for multiple rounds of IVF/donor cycles and the clinic or shared risk program will promise to refund all, or most, of your fees if the treatments do not result in a live birth. If the IVF procedure is not successful for a particular surrogate, then the money can be put towards future treatments or alternative fertility options.
• IVF medication – Medications comprise roughly 25% of IVF cycle costs and can be reduced substantially depending on the pharmacy used to acquire the medication. Also, whether the intended parents are enrolled in a medication program can make a substantial difference. It is sensible to compare pricing and often advantageous to purchase medication from a specialty pharmacy, such as DesignRx, which typically has competitive pricing.

The RXCONNECT program through Art Risk Solutions involves paying a nominal program fee, savings average about 50% on fertility prescription drugs. New Life Agency has a similar savings plan for fertility medications bought at Walgreens pharmacy, if the clinic medical professional is part of the preferred provider network. Two fertility medication producers, EMD Serono and Ferring Pharmaceuticals have a price reduction for specific types of patients. EMD Serono’s Compassionate Care Corps Program assists veterans and financially needy patients whereas Ferring Pharmaceuticals has the IVF Greenlight plan for all cash paying patients.

For domestic intended parents, the other important aspect of cost savings involves the intended parents’ health insurance. It is crucial to understand your insurance plan fully, and if necessary, opt for a plan that is more beneficial in terms of limits and coverage requirements. Many plans will provide coverage for some facets of a surrogacy pregnancy, such as the intended parents’ initial consultation with the IVF clinic, fertility medications, or even part or all of an IVF procedure so that the intended parents can create their embryos. Insurance may also pay for the infectious disease screenings intended parents require for the surrogacy journey.

Also important is that insurance starts paying for all medical expenses related to the baby after birth. You will need to investigate whether your plan covers out-of-network providers especially if the surrogacy delivery will take place in a state other than the one in which you live.

If you are fairly certain that an IVF procedure or birth will happen in a specific year, we also recommend maxing out your flexible spending account (FSA) or your health savings account (HSA). Many of the medical expenses will not be covered by insurance, including the insurance deductible, so it is sensible to put as much money aside as possible in the plans for likely medical expenses.

Fertility Financing Loans

Fertility financing loans are the main way that intended parents pay for surrogacy in the US. Specific loans and payment plans are made available to intended parents facing infertility. And sometimes lenders focus exclusively on clients seeking fertility treatments and pursuing surrogacy. Please see this comprehensive list of fertility financing options on the Capital Surrogacy website.

For now, let’s focus on the three largest financing options – Bettermed, Prosper Healthcare Lending, and New Life Fertility Finance.

Bettermed allows up to $350,000 in lending for healthcare expenses including all surrogacy-related expenditures. Of all loan applications to Bettermed, 98% are accepted, repayments are set to an affordable monthly amount, no payments are required for the first year, and the loan is entirely interest free.

Prosper Healthcare Lending covers all fertility expenses including medications, treatments, and procedures. Two unique characteristics are that there are no transaction fees per funded loan and the initial intake process can take place on any computer device 24/7.

New Life Fertility Finance provides financing options for all assisted reproduction insurance needs. Most notable is a fertility loan through LightStream (Truist bank) with low interest rates, between $5,000 and $100,000 per loan.

Fertility Grants

Unlike loans, grants are non-repayable funds that are earmarked for surrogacy and other infertility treatments. Grants are typically awarded annually to individuals who meet the qualifications of the specific grant organization. You must also apply through a formal process and most grants require a medical diagnosis of infertility. Once again, please see a more complete list of grants, but below we will discuss the most popular grants.

Baby Quest includes financial assistance for those who cannot afford the high expense associated with fertility treatments including third party reproduction such as egg and sperm donation, embryo donation, and surrogacy.

Family Formation Charitable Trust helps intended parents who wish to grow their families through adoption and assisted reproductive technology, such as surrogacy.

Journey to Parenthood targets US residents, and at least one grant is given per year, to build families through advanced fertility treatments, including surrogacy.

Without a doubt, surrogacy journeys are expensive, but they are often the very best way for intended parents to grow their families. Affording surrogacy may involve various strategies, that if used in combination, can yield significant cost savings. The strategies can provide a path to paying for the surrogacy journey.

Most importantly, professionals in the surrogacy field understand the high cost of surrogacy so never be shy about asking them for ways to cut costs. Do ask around for a more cost-effective option that will fulfill your needs and positively influence your surrogacy journey. We at Capital Surrogacy want nothing more than for you to be successful and we will help in any way that we can by passing along cost-saving tactics and information.

We encourage all intended parents to contact Capital Surrogacy and learn more about our processes and overall philosophy. Please visit and complete the short intended parent inquiry form, we cannot wait to hear from you!