Top Five Mistakes Egg Donors Make On Their Application By Guest Blogger Gail Sexton Anderson, Ed. M.

1) Not knowing the difference between race and ethnicity e.g. Caucasian is a race not an ethnicity. If you say that your ethnicity is Caucasian/White as your answer to you ethnicity that tells the intended parents nothing. Just as if you say that you are Asian for both your race and your ethnicity or European that is still very vague. Your chances of being matched quickly depends on how complete your profile is.

* Race is a broad category such as Asian, Caucasian, African America, Latino/Hispanic, Middle Eastern, Black and White may also be listed for race etc.

* Ethnicity is fine tuning to indicate where your family came from originally, you may be Irish, English, Swedish, German, Greek, Mexican, Chinese, Japanese, Persian, Lebanese or a combination, intended parents want to know what ethnicity or combination of ethnicities you are to see if you shares their ethnicity as well as their race.

2) Not knowing SAT or ACT score raises a question, these test are monumental in most peoples lives and they remember there scores for the rest of their lives. Saying that you don’t remember is highly unlikely. If you didn’t take it say so, if you did check with your college or high school, don’t make something up. Many couples will ask for verification of your scores which could be embarrassing if you have remembered your score incorrectly.

3) Not choosing your pictures carefully. Make sure the agency has a really good head-shot of you. If you don’t have one you can usually have one taken for about $20 in your local mall. Intended parents don’t know you and will not be able to see past a bad hair day picture to your inner beauty. Cell phone pictures are also not acceptable. Please avoid sexy poses, these are sometimes a turn off for intended mothers they want to see the sweet girl next store. And finally, party girl shots with a drink in hand can also be misleading. Remember these couples are about to make the hardest decision they never thought they would have to make. They are getting to know you through the information you are sharing with them. They are looking for wholesome not sexy think daughter material not date material.

4) Not knowing your blood type. For some intended parents blood type may be important. To find out your blood type you can probably contact your family physician or donate blood. Not filling in this information will again slow down the process. A blood test can usually be obtained for about $15.

5) Leaving blanks on your application. If you don’t know something find it out. Blanks on your application may leave the impression that you are not taking egg donation seriously. The last thing you want is to look like you are being cavalier and uncaring. Couples want to feel comfortable moving forward with you the more you can express your self in complete sentences the more they will be able to relate to who you are as an individual. They want to like you, help them by saying more not less. Put yourself in their shoes would you take the girl that has answered the questions as briefly as possible or the girl who has offered a window into who she is as a person.

Gail Sexton Anderson has dedicated her career to helping intended parents from all walks of life to build families. She founded Donor Concierge as a compassionate approach to helping intended parents sort through the gauntlet of egg donor and surrogacy options. Gail has developed working relationships with many excellent egg donor and surrogacy programs, reproductive endocrinologists, fertility attorneys, and mental health professionals specializing in third party fertility counseling she has known and trusted for years.

IVF Savings: Consider Shared Egg Donation

I have written about egg sharing before as an option to those who are watching their pennies and when I found this article below I wanted to share it with you. Have you ever considered Shared Egg Donation? Have you actually tried it? Please share your story with me and the rest of my readers! We would love to hear from YOU!

Sharon
www.InfertilityAnswers.net


IVF Savings: Consider Shared Egg Donation
By Eleni Himaras

Would-be parents who want to work with an egg donor, but who don't have the $30,000 or so in-vitro fertilization costs, have some hope. Many fertility centers give their recipient patients the option of splitting the cost of receiving an egg donation with another couple.

“It’s really great for the younger patients who haven’t had a chance to really acquire any finances," says Dr. Bruce Rose of Infertility Solutions, P.C., a clinic in Allentown, Pa."It gives them the chance to have a child not otherwise possible.”


Sharing Means Saving
This process can save patients up to 50% of the costs in this step in the in-vitro fertilization (IVF) process. In some cases what could typically cost $30,000 to $40,000 can come down in price to $15,000.
Other fertility treatment discounts are available, too. Dr. Carlos E. Soto-Albors, senior partner at the Northern California Fertility Medical Center in Roseville, Calif., is making IVF more affordable for patients by decreasing the cost each time they have the procedure, whether it is because they did not conceive the first time or because they want a second child.

“If they wait a year or two [to save additional monies for a second child] it will hurt their chance of getting pregnant,” he says.

Even With Fewer Eggs, Success Rates Are Similar
According to Soto-Albors, the most obvious drawback of sharing an egg donor is that each couple only gets half of the total oocytes.
Typically, when eggs are harvested, doctors will pick the healthiest two or three to turn into zygotes and implant into the mother. In a single-donor program, that can leave up to 10 eggs that can be frozen for use in the future if the procedure was unsuccessful or they want a second child.

But Soto-Albors says couples who share have a comparable conception rate as with those who do not share an egg donor.

“In 2008, we did 39 embryo transfers on the non-shared and 25 of those got pregnant,” he says. “That comes out to 64%.”

In the shared program, they implanted 11 women and seven got pregnant. That's an identical 64% success rate.

At Soto-Albors's practice, patients in the non-shared program pay $24,725, and those in the shared pay $16,775, but these numbers vary by clinic.

“When we started it years ago, I was expecting the success rate of the shared program to be smaller,” says Soto-Albors. But in the 10 years he’s been offering the program, the rates have only differed by, at most, 5%.

Insurance for SurroGenesis Pregnant Surrogates Tragedy

~~News Flash~~

In light of the current Michael Charles Financial and SurroGenesis surrogate agency scandal, where both allegedly stole up to $3,000,000 in trust fund money of over 150 families trying to achieve pregnancy through surrogacy, New Life Agency, Insurance Agency today announced they will work with the victims to insure the Intended Parents their surrogates will be covered.

Attorney Andrew Vorzimer of Vorzimer and Masserman in Woodland Hills California states “As a result of several concerned inquiries I have received today from victims of the SurroGenesis debacle, I have consulted with two criminal defense attorneys to assess any potential liability that might exist for Surrogates (and their Intended Parents) who had medical coverage through SGUSA’s group plan. Both concur that the circumstances surrounding the procurement of medical coverage presents serious legal issues.”

Trish Taylor, President, Founder of New Life said today “It is an absolute tragedy that any assisted reproduction professional would commit insurance fraud and put their clients and surrogates in this financial jeopardy. These people are now vulnerable to insurance claims and the loss of insurance protection. This is an even greater potential financial loss than the loss they have already experienced. I am determined they have something rather than nothing in place to help them through their pregnancy. We will accept their application for underwriting review whether they are in the middle to last months of pregnancy or just beginning.”

Our Team’s and Customer Care Center is ready to receive your call.

Surrogates and Intended Parents may now apply. Being vulnerable to insurance claims and the loss of insurance protection is a grave potential financial loss for the Surrogate and Intended Parent.


Sharon LaMothe
www.infertilityAnswers.net