Matching Process Flashcards
Where do I start?
The first step is to fill out a short form in which you share about your family and what you’re looking for in an egg donor. You then gain immediate, free access to our matching platform and can start browing for your perfect match. When you’re ready to begin the process with a specific donor, you can place a hold on a match for up to 5 days.
What kind of intended parents do you work with?
We believe the concept of “family” takes many forms, and we’re here to help your family grow, whatever that looks like. So regardless of your gender identity, sexual orientation, or relationship status, we do not discriminate, period.
What is egg sharing?
In traditional egg donation, all of the eggs retrieved in a given cycle are given to the intended parents in exchange for payment. However, in egg sharing, the donor has the opportunity to keep half the eggs retrieved for her own future and family planning in exchange for donating the other half to your family. At Cofertility, we exclusively work under the egg sharing model which we call Split, because we think it’s better for everyone involved–the intended parents, the egg donor, and ultimately the donor-received child.
Tell me about your Baby Guarantee?
We are proud to be one of the only agencies with a Baby Guarantee. What does that mean? It means that anything that comes up that prevents you from bringing home a baby, we’ll rematch you with a new donor at no additional fee. If a donor doesn’t pass screening, we’ll help you match again with no fee. If a cycle leads to no blastocysts, we’ll rematch you again with no fee. If none of the blastocysts turn into a pregnancy, we’ll match you again with no fee.
You’ll be responsible for other costs associated with a new match, but you won’t be responsible for Cofertility’s coordination fee.
Where is Cofertility based?
We work with anyone who is looking to build a family through egg donation in the U.S. or anywhere in the world. Our donors are primarily based in the U.S., and we are happy to work with intended parents around the globe, depending on your country’s laws around third-party reproduction.
When it comes to our team, we collaborate remotely and are distributed across the U.S.
How do I place a hold on a match?
When you’ve fond a donor you want to move forward with, press the “Place a Hold” button at the top of her profile. From there, you’ll put down a $500 deposit to place a hold on that match. As soon as you confirm your preferences around disclosure status and clinic selection, we’ll reach out to the donor to confirm her interest and availability.
How long does the match process take?
The timeline can vary, but in total the process from match to cycle may generally be two to four months. Once you create a free account, you’ll gain access to our matching platform and can start to learn more about our donors. When you’re ready to begin the matching process, you can place a hold on the match for up to 5 days.
When you match with a Split member (who will be freezing her eggs and donating half to your family), we can begin the process of scheduling her freezing and testing with your clinic, which generally takes a few weeks. Once your doctor gives you the go-ahead, we’d set a date for the cycle at a time that is mutually convenient.
Does the donor have a say in the match?
Yes, unlike others in the space, we pride ourselves on facilitating mutual matches that meet the needs of you, your family and the donor. After you place a hold on a match, our Member Advocate will reach out to the donor to ensure that she consents to the match. Once she does, you’ll be able to move forward with the process.
What are my disclosure options?
In a disclosed donation with Cofertility, you and the donor will exchange contact information and can communicate directly. In an undisclosed donation, you will not exchange contact information and only communicate via Cofertility. With an undisclosed donation, you could arrange to have the information available to your child down the road (this is sometimes called Open ID).
We highly encourage disclosed donations as we’ve met with the US Donor Conceived Council and heard from the donor conceived community that disclosed is best for the donor conceived person. However, if you choose to move forward with an undisclosed donation after careful consideration, we will honor that decision.
What relationship will I have with the donor?
Every relationship is unique and depends on the desires of all parties involved: you, the donor and the future donor conceived children. The extent of the relationship, including the point at which your contact information is shared and the frequency of communication, is up to both parties and will be determined during the agreement phase.
It’s important to separate your disclosure status from any potential relationship that you have with the donor. For example you may have a disclosed donation, in which you share contact information but decide not to maintain regular communication.
In any case more research shows the benefits of being open with children about their donor-conceived roots. As such, we encourage you to be open with your own children about their conception story. We share more about our stance on disclosure in this article.
Will I meet the donor?
Regardless of your disclosure status, you and the donor may choose to meet as part of the match process. This meeting can take many forms. For example, you can meet over Zoom, over the phone or in person. The meeting can be facilitated with or without sharing contact information. Some intended parents choose not to meet “live” but to instead share information about themselves via a letter, slides or video to their donor.
If you do meet “live” we’ve put together a list of suggested questions and conversation starters that we’ll share with you and the donor before your meeting. Though we don’t require someone from Cofertility to be on the meeting, some from our team can join for part or all of the time.
In short, we view match meetings as another way for you and the donor to connect on a human level. There’s no right or wrong way to do this. If it’s something you’re interested in, we’ll work with you to do so in a way that feels good for you.
Do you have anonymous donors?
It is impossible to guarantee anonymity in egg donation. With widely available genetic testing and more state laws banning anonymous gamete donation, it’s increasingly likely that identity and shared genetics will be discovered. We ensure that our Split members (who will be freezing her eggs and donating half to your family), are aware of the possibility that even in an undisclosed donation where contact information is not shared, donor-conceived children may eventually want to reach out with their own questions.
What if I can’t find a donor who is a good fit?
We are committed to working with donors who are as unique as you and your family, and hope that we can find someone who is a great fit. There is no fee to access our matching platform and once you have an account, you can indicate specific characteristics of criteria that you’re looking for in a match. Sign up for emails so you can get notified, as we are constantly adding new members who may be a good match for you and your family. Still don’t see what you’re looking for in a donor? Send us an email at suppport@cofertility.com and we can discuss how we can help.
