NEW YORK CITY, NEW YORK: ‘Watch What Happens Live!’ host Andy Cohen, who is a father of two, recently shared that his daughter Lucy is “one of the first surrogate babies” to be born in New York by the gestational surrogacy method. During an appearance at Amanda Hirsch's Dear Media podcast ‘Not Skinny But Not Fat’, the Bravo personality spoke briefly about his experience and offered his take on legalizing the method that was banned in the state of New York till 2020.
He recounted, "I was going to Albany ... [gestational] surrogacy was illegal in the state of New York until [2020] and I helped get that law passed." He further added that he has Governor Cuomo to thank for it, "And Governor Cuomo, he really made it happen.” The talk show host's revelation has renewed public interest in the process.
According to the New York State Department of Health, gestational pregnancy is defined as “a process where one person, who did not provide the egg used in conception, carries a fetus through pregnancy and gives birth to a baby for another person or couple. The person who carries the fetus is called a "surrogate" or "gestational carrier." The person or couple who are seeking to parent the baby or babies are called the "intended parent(s)." Thus, in the case of gestational pregnancy, the surrogate mother is not genetically linked with the baby, leading to fewer legal complications.
‘Never thought it would be possible’
Andy Cohen has always been a fan of surrogacy. After his son’s birth in 2019, Cohen told Hoda Kotb on the 'Today’ show that he chose surrogacy over adoption because he had “the means to be able to.” He said, “I was fortunate to have the means to be able to. It can be expensive and complicated.” He further continued, “And I just said, ‘I’m going to do this, I’m going to try to do this,’ and I did.”
During the same interview, he also said that he learned it was illegal to have surrogacies in many states of the US. He noted, “It’s incredible to me as I’ve now learned that surrogacy is illegal in many states, and I don’t understand why it’s illegal in New York and New Jersey, which is why I went to California. That’s where my wonderful surrogate was, who I owe so much to.”
Cohen, a supporter of the procedure, told Anderson Cooper during CNN’s New Year’s Eve celebration, “When I was growing up and when we were growing up…I just never thought it would be possible, as a gay man, to grow up and have a family,” before adding, “And here we are in 2018, almost [2019], and anything’s possible.”
Which other celebrities have opted for gestational pregnancy?
Lucy Liu of ‘Charlie’s Angels’ revealed in 2015 that her first child, Rockwell Lloyd Liu, is a surrogate child by the gestational method. She told People, "It just seemed like the right option for me because I was working and I didn’t know when I was going to be able to stop," before adding, "I decided that was probably the best solution for me, and it turned out to be great."
Nick Jonas and Priyanka Chopra too welcomed their daughter Malti Marie Chopra Jonas via surrogate. They took to Instagram to share the good news by writing, "We are overjoyed to confirm that we have welcomed a baby via surrogate,” before adding, "We respectfully ask for privacy during this special time as we focus on our family. Thank you so much."
