Baby Business Boom

Bad news for the economy can be good news for the baby business.

Some Chicago area fertility clinics say they've seen a surge in women inquiring about becoming egg donors or surrogates for infertile couples, apparently because of the recent economic downturn.

Summer is usually a slow period for donors, but "we have really noticed an increase in calls and inquiries and applications since about April," said Nancy Block, founder of the Center for Egg Options in Northbrook.

Robin von Halle, president of Alternative Reproductive Resources, said she has noticed a similar trend at ARR, an agency that pairs infertile couples with surrogates and egg donors.

The agency typically gets about 30 to 50 calls a day from potential donors, and for the last few months, that number has consistently been on the higher end of the scale, von Halle said.

"We get a lot of people applying to be donors and gestational surrogates at a time when jobs are hard to come by," she said. "A lot of women [are] looking to supplement their income."

Yet only a fraction...