The controversy over Gammy, a baby boy with Down's syndrome who was abandoned to his Thai surrogate mother, turned the spotlight on the rules surrounding international surrogacy, with many calling for reforms.

Surrogate mother Pattaramon Chanbua, 21, detailed in several interviews how a couple from Western Australia took the healthy baby girl she delivered but abandoned her twin brother because of his condition. The couple, whose names were not revealed, denied the accusations and maintained that the baby they had with them had no twin brother, The Guardian relayed.

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The world is now focused on Gammy, who is hospitalized in Thailand for a critical lung infection and is due for a heart operation. His plight started an international debate and an online campaign that raised thousands of dollars for his treatment.

On Monday, the Australian government suggested that it might grant the baby Australian citizenship to give him his needed lifetime medical support. After hearing Gammy's story, Immigration minister Scott Morrison called for a closer examination of Australia's "very murky" surrogacy regulations.

Sam Everingham from Surrogacy Australia said their country's surrogacy services need to be overhauled to avoid Gammy's plight from happening to another child. Sarah Taylor Jones of Surrogacy U.K. said the complications in the international laws create problems for both parents and children.

Each country has a different set of laws on surrogacy and this can complicate the situation for parents.

Surrogacy is banned in Germany, Italy, Sweden, France and other countries. In Australia and the U.K., the rules are more complicated.

Paying a surrogate mother is illegal in Australia, but Western Australia and other states allow payment to surrogates overseas. In addition, an Australian woman is allowed to become a surrogate for free and can refuse to give the baby to its biological parents after delivery.

In the U.K, surrogacy is legal but parents pay only for reasonable expenses. In 19 U.S. states, paying for a surrogate is legal and they have laws for both compensated and unpaid surrogacy.

Commercial surrogacy is considered legal in India and the expenses are lower compared to developed countries. Ukraine, Russia and Georgia also allow people to pay a woman to become a surrogate.

On July 22, the government of Thailand deemed commercial surrogacy as illegal and announced that only blood relatives are allowed to become surrogates.

TagsGammy, Down's syndrome, Thailand, Western Australia, Australia, Pattaramon Chanbua, The Guardian, Scott Morrison, Sam Everingham, Surrogacy Australia, Surrogacy UK, Sarah Taylor Jones, U.S., Ukraine, Russia, Georgia