Surrogacy Insurance Limit Raised

• 07 Sep 2024

Why in News?

Recently, the Madhya Pradesh government has increased the insurance coverage for surrogacy policies for women to Rs 10 lakh.

Key Points

• The government has raised the insurance coverage for surrogacy from Rs 2 lakh to Rs 10 lakh for women undergoing surrogacy.
• In MP126 institutions ART(Assisted Reproductive Technology Bank, ART Level -1 Clinic, ART Level -2 Clinic and Surrogacy) are registered under the State Assisted Reproductive Technology and Surrogacy Regulation Act 2021.
• Surrogacy: It is an arrangement in which a woman (the surrogate) agrees to carry and give birth to a child on behalf of another person or couple (the intended parent/s).
  • A surrogate, sometimes also called a gestational carrier, is a woman who conceives, carries and gives birth to a child for another person or couple (intended parent/s).
  • Altruistic Surrogacy:It involves no monetary compensation to the surrogate mother other than the medical expenses and insurance coverage during the pregnancy.
  • Commercial Surrogacy:It includes surrogacy or its related procedures undertaken for a monetary benefit or reward (in cash or kind) exceeding the basic medical expenses and insurance coverage.
• The Centre modified the Surrogacy (Regulation) Rules, 2022, allowing surrogacy with one gamete from the intending couple and permitting single women to use self-eggs and donor sperm.

Surrogacy (Regulation) Act, 2021

• Provisions:
  • Under the Surrogacy (Regulation) Act, 2021, a woman who is a widow or a divorcee between the age of 35 to 45 years or a couple, defined as a legally married woman and man, can avail of surrogacy if they have a medical condition necessitating this option.
    • The intended couple shall be a legally married Indian man and woman, the man shall be between the ages of 26-55 years and the woman shall be between the ages of 25-50 years, and shall not have any previous biological, adopted, or surrogate child.
  • It also bans commercial surrogacy, which is punishable with a jail term of 10 years and a fine of up to Rs 10 lakhs.
  • The law allows only altruistic surrogacy where no money exchanges hands and where a surrogate mother is genetically related to those seeking a child.