Building a family through assisted reproductive technology (ART) such as gestational surrogacy comes with additional legal requirements. And for international intended parents, newborn insurance is an especially important part of your journey.
Because your newborn won’t be insured under your surrogate’s insurance policy, it’s necessary that intended parents secure newborn insurance that covers your baby in the U.S. the second they’re born.
Let's learn about why this is so important, and how you can prepare for the birth of your child!
As international intended parents pursuing surrogacy, egg donation, or both in the U.S., you’ll likely have to purchase an insurance policy within the country to ensure that any medical needs will be covered. Gestational surrogacy increases the intended parents’ chances of twins (or multiples), also increasing the possibility of a premature birth.
If your surrogate has twins, delivers early, or both and your newborn(s) end up in the NICU for weeks or months without insurance, your medical bills can easily reach hundreds of thousands of dollars.
Many intended parents come from around the world to pursue surrogacy in the US because of the surrogate-friendly laws. As a domestic intended parent, you don’t need to worry about newborn insurance because your current insurance plan will already cover your baby at birth -- you’ll only need to worry about insuring your surrogate.
And for international intended parents, gaining newborn insurance coverage is achievable through multiple methods. Let’s walk through these accessible forms of insurance.
If you work for a company that offers travel to the U.S. for work and have a U.S. residence, your newborn may also be eligible to gain coverage through this plan. Even if you are not traveling to the U.S. often for work, this can be a great option because it's very cost effective.
Adding your newborn onto your policy will either cost nothing or amount to the typical cost of adding a dependent onto your policy. This insurance plan becomes an even greater possibility if you work for an international government organization.
Multiple companies provide traveler’s insurance, which offers medical coverage of international clients and their newborn babies, with no surrogacy exclusions. However, some of these insurance plans do require that they are held for a certain amount of time prior to the birth of the child, meaning that this plan needs to be done in advance. Many of these plans only cover complications, not routine newborn care.
If you're pursuing surrogacy with Hatch, your coordinator will walk you throughout the newborn insurance selection process to ensure that your child(ren) are protected.
Preparing for your newborn’s welcome will be one of the most exciting experiences for your family, and this time will be a catalyst for a wonderful new phase in your life: parenthood. It's important to set your little one up for success.
Ensuring your newborn has insurance immediately upon birth is crucial, as they won’t be placed on your surrogate’s insurance policy. Failing to complete this could result in receiving large medical costs not covered by any insurance. And as you likely already know, your surrogate is not liable to cover any charges related to your baby once the child is born.
Luckily, getting your baby on your or your spouse’s insurance plan is a standard process. To seamlessly get your newborn on your insurance policy within the U.S., you can take the following simple steps.
These steps include:
For international intended parents, some of the most cost-effective insurance options must be purchased as soon as 2 months prior to an embryo transfer. Others are applied for just before the transfer and activated at confirmation of pregnancy. While others are applied for during the second trimester. The timing will depend on the plan you select so consulting with an insurance specialist early in the process is crucial to ensure you have access to all options.
Note: Keep in mind that most international newborn insurance plans cover complications only and international parents often must pay in cash for routine newborn care in the US.
Directly consult your insurance provider or company's HR representative to determine your plan’s exact coverage if you have a U.S. insurance plan. If you travel to the U.S. for work and you’re currently insured through your employer, your child(ren) may also be insurable. If you work for an international government organization, you’re likely to have insurance coverage for you and your newborn!
Consult your surrogacy insurance specialist about adding your baby to your policy and insurance plan. At Hatch, we’ll connect you with the necessary legal counsel and resources to best prepare you for insuring your newborn.
Talk to your attorney while drafting your pre-birth and post-birth contracts to determine the best possible date to add your newborn to your plan in ensuring they are covered for the delivery if your plan does allow coverage in the United States.
Preparing for your path to parenthood is stressful, especially when assisted reproductive technologies and third parties are involved. Make sure you’re in the best of hands throughout this journey with the top fertility services, qualified surrogates, and educated, experienced family building experts.
At Hatch, you’ll be taken care of by experienced surrogates and egg donors themselves, with access to the top 5% of donors and surrogates nation-wide. Find out how you can begin making your dreams of a family into reality today by getting in touch with our team, or find your surrogate now.
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