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Ethical and Legal Dilemmas of Surrogacy Essay

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Ethical and Legal Dilemmas of Surrogacy
Christie Blackwell
HCA 322
Dr. Nine Bell
June 17, 2013

Ethical and Legal Dilemmas of Surrogacy Many individuals have a life plan consisting of college, marriage, and then children. After numerous methods of conception, many couples are still unable to conceive a child. A woman who enters into a contract with a couple, agreeing to carry and birth a child, then hand that child over to the contracted couple, who is often unable to conceive own their own naturally is considered surrogacy (Pozgar, 2012). Surrogacy raises many ethical and legal issues for all parties involved. Is it moral or immoral to enter into an agreement with a woman to birth a child for money? What are the …show more content…

On the flipside on the issue, can it not also be viewed that allowing these women to do as they see fit with their bodies as economic empowerment? The money provided to these women can used for various financial means outside of taking care of medical heath care for themselves and the child. The amount provided to each female varies depending on what she and the couple feel is sufficient, therefore any extra monetary compensation can used to help the women relieve themselves from other debts. Autonomy does provide the right that women get to choose their reproductive rights and that includes bearing children for those who cannot do so or for monetary stability. Suggesting that surrogacy dehumanizes her is another form of paternalism. Paternalism limits one’s autonomy for their own good (Pozgar, 2012). Some view altruistic surrogacy as a form of exploiting the surrogate. There is no monetary compensation to woman placing her health and well-being on the line for another’s benefit. However, it can also be held that the woman knowingly entered into the agreement with full disclosure of the risks and benefits to her health and body. Again, autonomy and justice are extremely prevalent ethical principles to explore when discussing the topic of surrogacy. Same-sex marriage has become a hot topic in the United States in the last few years. The idea of raising a family by homosexual

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