ID Release vs. Open Donor

Maya27Maya27 Posts: 20
in Ask California Cryobank
I was noticing that a lot of the newer (non-anonymous) donors are ID Release instead of just Open donors. I'm still confused as to how ID Release is really different from Open. I'm also confused as to why the cost between the two is so different. It seems that by CCB adding ID release it just limits the pool of Open donors, which is frustrating, as this process is already SO expensive.

Comments

  • cryo-admincryo-admin Posts: 4,547
    Hi M -

    Excellent question!

    Yes, going forward our donors will either be Anonymous or ID Release.

    Here's the difference between Open donors & ID Release donors:

    Open donors have agreed to a minimum of one communication with any offspring that requests it (once they are 18 years old). We facilitate that one communication and it's up to both parties to decide what information they would like to share during that communication.

    ID Release donors have agreed to allow us to release identifying information which may include their name, last known address, email, etc. with any offspring that requests it (once they are 18 years old). We would still facilitate one anonymous communication before we release the information.

    You can read more about this here:
    https://cryobank.com/how-it-works/donor-types/

    Our clients have been asking for ID Release donors over the years and we made the change to provide this service.

    We understand that this is an expensive process. Please keep in mind that the price you're paying for a vial isn't just for the vial itself. We operate facilities in 5 different cities to be able to recruit the best and largest selection of donors. We require our donors to have a Bachelor's degree or currently attending a 4-year university. 99% of applicants do not make it through our process to become donors. Our staff for handling donors and applicants alone is larger than the entire staff of some sperm banks. We have 5 Genetic Counselors on staff, we've expanded our Quality Assurance Team, and we added additional experts to our Board of Medical Directors. We've decreased the amount of vials we collect per donor to limit offspring totals as pregnancy rates have increased through advances in Assisted Reproductive Technology. We are committed to providing superior levels of products and services for our clients which does come at a cost.

    I hope this information is helpful.

    Regards,

    Nicole
    CCB
  • Maya27Maya27 Posts: 20
    Thank you Nicole for that thorough explanation. I do appreciate it. I also understand why it's such an expensive process. I do though wonder why there's such a difference in price between the anonymous and ID Release donors since the same quality control, etc exists for both. There was already a large price gap between the Open and Anonymous donors and now it's even greater with the ID Release.

    This is just such an expensive process for us parents going through this. It'd be really nice if there were financial assistance and some way to bring costs down, rather than up.

    Thank you for your time,
    Maya
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