Once illegal across the state, New Yorkers will be able to arrange and carry out paid surrogacy contracts starting Feb. 15.

Lisa and Mohammad, of Valley Stream, have been married for six years. They say they have always wanted kids, but Lisa can't carry her own child due to medical reasons.

The couple is now excited that paid surrogacy will be legal in New York starting Monday. This means they will have the option to enter a paid legal contract and have a surrogate carry their baby.

"New York state is a little bit behind the curve, but we are glad they've caught up because it's already an expensive procedure on top of it, it's nice to be done in your own state," Lisa says.

The new law has a lot of protections for the surrogate herself, who must be at least 21 years old.

Attorney Joseph Milizio says intended parents are required to provide benefits to the surrogate, like health care, life insurance, disability insurance and legal counsel.

"The purpose of having legal representation is to negotiate a surrogacy agreement, and that surrogacy agreement is used before the pregnancy actually occurs and after the birth of the child— to cover everything regarding the pregnancy and the resulted birth," Milizio says.

Now couples like Lisa and Mohammed won't have to travel out of state for someone to have their baby.

"It's something that we are looking forward to because we do have our own embryos that we wanted a surrogate to carry,” Lisa says. “We want to be available every step of the way. By having that available to us from someone in our home state, we can be.”

Insurers will also have to provide immediate coverage for fertility services for same sex couples.