Should Surrogate Motherhood be Allowed? Essay -- essays research paper

Surrogate Motherhood is when one women carries to term the fertilized egg of another woman. This procedure is chosen by married couples who can not conceive a child in the â€Å"natural way†. In some occasions the mother may be able to produce an egg, but has no womb or some other physical problem which prevents her from carrying a child. Whether or not the husband can produce a large amount of sperm is not a problem. Once the egg and sperm are combined in a petri dish fertilization is very likely to occur. The couple will then choose a surrogate mother and make an agreement in which she will carry the baby and release it to the genetic parents after the birth. There are four different kinds of surrogacy arrangements. Total Surrogacy is when the woman bears a child that has been formed from the gametes of another woman and man and implanted in her body. Partial Surrogacy occurs when the birth mother contributes the ovum and the sperm is introduced by artificial insemination. She is a biological parent of the child. Commercial Surrogacy means a business-like transaction where a fee is charged for the incubation period. Lastly, there is a Non-Commercial Surrogacy in which there is no formal contract or any payment to the birth mother. It is usually an arrangement between close friends or family members.(1-10) There is no federal policy on the issue of surrogacy, all fifty states have been left to decide theses issues themselves and create their own policies. The majority of the states have not yet legislated on this subject. Those states that have taken positions differ greatly from one another, such as California and Virginia, who have taken opposing viewpoints California is the state that is the most sympathetic to the genetic parents. Under California law surrogacy agreements are enforceable and the genetic parents are given all legal parental rights to the child. In Virginia, all legal parental rights to the child are given to the surrogate mother. Who is the legal mother? In the case of Johnson v. Calvert, in Virginia, the surrogate mother was found to be the legal mother of the child. If this case would have taken place in California, the biological mother is the legal mother. So it really depends on which state the act of surrogacy is taking place to name the legal mother. Are contracts for surrogate motherhood enforceable under American law? Again, i... ... both expert medical and psychological evaluations. Another major question that arises is whether or not the commissioning parents have the right to tell surrogate mother how to live? Can the couple ban smoking, control alcohol, and other substance intake? These issues need to be taken into mind before choosing a surrogate mother and needs to be stated in the contract.(1-2) In conclusion, surrogate motherhood raises many legal and ethical dilemmas, especially that of who the legal mother is. Surrogate motherhood dramatically alters society norms and creates many different legal viewpoints. But no matter which legal body is dealing with this issue, they all face the same moral and ethical dilemma: that a child born out of surrogacy has a bond with both the genetic mother and the surrogate mother. The bond between these two women and this child is permanent and cannot be changed by law. The law can only govern which woman has the legal right to raise the child. Works Cited Centre Points, Volume 1, No. 1, Article #2, Surrogate Motherhood and its Human Costs, Suzanne Rozell Scorsone, Ph.D. ;1-2 Johnson v. Calvert, 5 Cal. 4th 84, 851p.2d 776, 19 Cal. Rptr. 2d 494 (1993); 1-10