Around the world, there are countless couples unable to bear their own children.  For these people, the prospect of having a child seems impossible.  Enter the surrogates.  In India, Reuters reports that surrogacy for pay or “rent-a-womb” is a booming industry.  Testimonials from happy couples that finally have the child they dreamed of continue to fuel the industry’s growth.  However, there is a growing debate that regulation of the industry is necessary in order to avoid exploitation of poor women.

According to the Center for Bioethics and Culture Network, surrogates agree to undergo a pregnancy and give birth to a child for someone else.  Generally, the surrogate usually has no biological relationship to the child, she has no legal claim to the child, and the surrogate’s name does not appear on the birth certificate.  In many countries and jurisdictions throughout the world, primarily throughout Europe, surrogacy is an illegal medical procedure.

India first opened up to commercial surrogacy in 2002.  This makes it one of only a few countries that allow women to be paid to carry another’s genetic child through a process of in-vitro fertilization (IVF) and embryo transfer.  Other countries include Georgia, Russia, Thailand, Ukraine, and the U.S.  However, in the U.S. regulation of surrogacy varies from state to state and it is only legal to pay surrogates in a few states.

Surrogacy India, a Mumbai-based fertility clinic, has been open since 2007.  During its time in business, the clinic has produced 295 surrogate babies.  Of these, 90 percent went to overseas clients and 40 percent went to same-sex couples.  The best known clinic is the Akanksha clinic in Anand, which has a reputation as the surrogacy capital.  This clinic has produced 500 surrogate babies, of which two-thirds have gone to foreigners.  Clients also include people of Indian descent living in 30 different countries.

In response, there have been moves to introduce legislation called the Assisted Reproductive Technologies Bill (ART) to regulate surrogacy.  Revised visa requirements introduced in July have already resulted in foreign same-sex couples and individuals being prohibited from surrogacy in India.  The new legislation would require that all fertility clinics must be registered and monitored by a regulatory authority. Surrogates must be between 21 and 35 years old, they will be provided with insurance and notarized contracts must be signed between the women and the commissioning parents.  According to PBS, some clinics focus on the well-being of the surrogate as much as the bottom line.  They provide counseling and restrict repeat surrogacy for women that have suffered complications.