Once prospective parents begin their search for a surrogate mother, whether in an independent situation or through an agency, they will soon come across the phrase “base fee.” What is this fee for? Who sets these rates? Isn’t that the same as ‘paying’ a surrogate mother? Why is the word compensation used?

Let me clarify the “base rate factors”. In general, a base rate is to cover the 9 months or 40 weeks that your surrogate mother will be pregnant with her child or children. It is very rare that the base fee money is distributed before you see a heartbeat on the ultrasound screen. The base rate is usually broken down into monthly payments, however these are not equal monthly installments. Let’s use a fee of $20,000. The breakdown can look like this:

Month one: $1,500
Month two: $1,500
Month three: $2,000
Month four: $2,000
Month five: $2,000
Month six: $2,500
Month seven: $2,500
Month eight: $3,000
Month nine: $3,000

These fees are usually strategically set this way in a contract because there are many times a miscarriage can occur in the first few months of an IVF cycle. This way, the intended parents don’t lose a lot of money and the surrogate mother is compensated for the time she actually spent.

Let’s remember that babies are born on their own schedule, so if a baby or babies are born early, the amount that is left over is put into a final check and delivered to the surrogate mother within 14 days of birth or whatever indicated in the contract. In the case of multiples, an additional amount is often added from month 5 to month 9.

So who sets these rates? Good question! Basically, the attorneys and agencies know state by state what those judges will tolerate regarding a subrogation fee. This is why you don’t see women being surrogates and getting paid $100,000! If a judge sees a staggeringly large amount of money in a contract, that fact alone will raise the following questions: “Was this woman coerced? Is she selling her body? Is she selling a baby?” That is why the base fee is called compensation or reimbursement or even living expenses. Surrogate mothers are supposed to carry a child not to earn money but for altruistic reasons. Any money involved is to support them throughout the process. The point is that no money should come out of the surrogate mother’s family budget to support her while she is a surrogate mother.

The average base rates that agencies ask for their surrogates look like this:
First-time surrogate mother with her own health insurance: $18,000-$20,000
First-time surrogate mother without her own health insurance: $13,000-$15,000
Second time surrogate with your own health insurance: $25,000-$28,000
Second time surrogate without her own health insurance: $20,000-$22,000
Third and fourth time surrogates with health insurance can charge up to $45,000 and those without $35,000.

Yes, there are a few variations, but this configuration is the most common. Insurance companies are adding subrogation exclusions every time they print a new policy! They feel that if money is exchanged, then their politics should not be used as a bargaining chip. If a surrogate mother has Medicaid, then she cannot, under any circumstances, use government insurance! This is FRAUD and is punishable by law. Uninsured surrogate mothers should be insured as soon as possible through one of the few companies that have a policy especially for those involved in third party reproduction or family formation. New Life is one of those agencies. It goes without saying that these are very expensive policies, which is why an uninsured surrogate mother receives less compensation than those who have their own health insurance policies with maternity coverage.