Michigan is one step closer to allowing paid surrogacy contracts following a vote in the State Senate Tuesday.
According to Governor Gretchen Whitmer’s office, Michigan is currently the only state that criminalizes such contracts.
“This gives us a lot of hope,” said parent Rachael Lang.
Lang and her husband are not listed on their 1-year-old daughter’s birth certificate even though they are her biological parents.
Their surrogate’s name is on the birth certificate, Lang said.
The Langs are going through the process of adopting their daughter.
“It is very frustrating, on top of everything that we have gone through already as a family, to then be told we aren’t her parents,” Lang said.
The Michigan Family Protection Act consists of nine bills.
The act also adds protections for other assisted reproduction, such as IVF, and ensures that LGBTQ+ parents are treated equally.
Whitmer is planning to sign the Michigan Family Protection Act into law.
“Decisions about if, when, and how to have a child are deeply personal. Politicians should not be dictating the terms of these private decisions that should be left to a family, their doctor, and those they love and trust,” Whitmer said in a statement.
For several years, the Michigan Fertility Alliance has advocated for the legislation.
“We are thrilled,” said MFA founder Stephanie Jones. “We feel this is a long time coming.”
Jones and her husband decided to find a surrogate in Kentucky because of the laws in Michigan.
Right to Life of Michigan doesn’t support the surrogacy legislation, saying in a statement: “Altruistic surrogacy has always been legal in Michigan. Unfortunately, the current bills create a commercial surrogacy industry which puts women without means at a disadvantage and risks creating a market in which children are a currency.”
Lang said she and her husband are now more likely to embark on the surrogacy journey again with the coming protections in Michigan.