Surrogacy legalized in Mexico

New legislation was passed in Mexico City that both legalizes and regulates the practice of surrogacy. The new laws are certainly a welcome change for many of the 1.5 million Mexican couples who are currently struggling with infertility. Under the new laws, a surrogate mother should "lend her uterus" on a not for profit basis, but she will be entitled to have all her medical expenses reimbursed by the intended parents, from fertility treatments through pregnancy to childbirth. Women will be allowed to act as surrogates on two occasions, but can only do so for couples who have a confirmed infertility diagnosis.

Under the new Mexican regulations, surrogacy will not establish any kinship between the surrogate mother and the fetus she will carry. After childbirth, a surrogate will be obliged to hand the baby over to its intended parents, and failure to do so can result in civil or criminal charges. Furthermore, a gestational surrogate mother can opt to have an abortion if her life is in danger. Abortions due to birth defects or fetal anomalies can be performed if and when that is decided by the intended parents. Surrogate mothers and intended parents will be bound by legal contracts, and the actual fertility treatment can take place in private or public hospitals in Mexico City.

I am sure that many couples will be extremely happy after the law was changed, and I think that proper surrogacy legislation always serves to protect all parties that participate in a surrogacy journey; the intended mother and father, the surrogate mother, and the baby. Hopefully, many families will benefit from this change. Are you in Mexico? What do you think about this change in law? Let us know your thoughts! For previous surrogacy news items, see Oregon mother jailed for surrogacy scam (and such scams are exactly something that can be prevented with proper legislation!) and pay your international surrogate, lose the rights to your child?