September 17, 2021
On this episode of Fertility Cafe, Eloise dives into the complicated question: what’s happening with supply and demand in the world of third-party reproduction? COVID-19 has certainly had a drastic effect on the availability of surrogates, egg donors, and sperm donors, yet at the same time, the demand for these crucial pieces to the third-party reproduction puzzle has only increased. Can it all be blamed on the pandemic, or is something else going on here?
Eloise explores several angles of this dilemma, including:
- How COVID-19 shutdowns and precautions initially affected the industry, and how those effects are still being felt today
- Why we currently have a serious shortage of surrogate applications — despite the fact that applications were pouring in during the height of pandemic shutdowns in 2020
- The increased availability and acceptance of surrogacy as a viable path to parenthood, particularly for gay men, and how this is increasing demand for qualified surrogates
- Why there is such a shortage of egg donors and sperm donors, and how at-home DNA testing may play a role
- The continued lack of diversity among donors and possible solutions
- How the #donorconceived conversation is playing out on TikTok and other social media outlets, and what kind of role this might play in people’s willingness to donate
- An outlook on the future of third-party reproduction and how the conversation may need to change
Resources
- Learn more about our podcast: Fertility Cafe
- Learn more about our surrogacy and egg donation agency: Family Inceptions
- How to apply to be a surrogate: the application process
- How to apply to be an egg donor: the application process
- On the blog: What is Surrogacy?
- On the blog: A Beginner’s Guide to Fertility Acronyms
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