Monday, October 8, 2012

Surrogacy and the Celebrities--The Daily

Fashion designer Tom Ford became the latest celebrity to use a surrogate mother to make a baby on Friday when it was announced that he and his partner of 24 years, editor Richard Buckley, had become fathers of a boy named Alexander.
They joined a list that includes Giuliana Rancic, Elton John, Camille Grammer, Ricky Martin, Sarah Jessica Parker and Nicole Kidman. But there are tens of thousands of parents who are not rich or famous using surrogates.
A professional Washington D.C.-based facilitator, Crystal Travis, tells Flash that the baby-making technique has become more affordable in recent years, thanks to outsourcing.
“It’s a $2.3 billion industry in India,” said Travis. “It’s much more expensive in the U.S., more than $100,000. In India, it’s about $35,000.” Travis, who experienced the anguish on infertility herself, started her World of Surrogacy consulting business in 2007, after she and her husband had three kids in India using the same surrogate mother.
Gay men are big customers because it’s largely unregulated, as opposed to adoption, which involves reams of red tape. “It’s much easier than adopting and works out to be about the same cost,” Travis said.

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