In the U.S., surrogate parenting is widely accepted. Although no official figures exist, experts believe perhaps a thousand American children are born every year through surrogacy.
A patchwork of state-to-state regulations governs the practice. But the bottom line is if you're an American in the market for a surrogate — and you have money to spend — you can do it.
Things are very different in other parts of the world.
In Europe, for example, it's illegal in half a dozen countries, including France, Germany, Italy and Spain.