Have Indian Surrogates Been Harmed by Commercial Surrogacy Transactions?

Area of Science:

• Reproductive ethics
• Socio-legal studies
• Women's health

Background:

• Commercial surrogacy in India is under legislative review, with a focus on altruistic arrangements.
• Concerns exist regarding the potential exploitation and harm to surrogate women in commercial surrogacy.
• Limited research addresses the specific harms experienced by women undergoing surrogacy.

Purpose of the Study:

• To address the gap in literature regarding harm to surrogate women.
• To develop and apply a framework for assessing harm in surrogacy.
• To analyze harm within the context of Indian surrogacy practices.

Main Methods:

• Development of a three-step framework based on Mill's harm principle.
• Application of the framework to a sample of women who provided surrogacy services in India.
• Analysis of surrogacy arrangements between 2006 and 2015.

Main Results:

• The study identifies potential harms associated with surrogacy, even in altruistic contexts.
• The proposed framework provides a structured approach to evaluating harm in surrogacy.
• Findings are relevant to the period preceding the ban on overseas couples accessing commercial surrogacy.

Conclusions:

• Harm assessment in surrogacy requires nuanced consideration beyond exploitation.
• The Mill's harm principle framework offers a valuable tool for ethical and legal evaluation.
• Further research is needed to fully understand the long-term impacts on surrogate women.