One of the big questions I get asked is... If I hire a midwife or doula, will my insurance company cover her fees? And if so, how do I go about it? This is a very good question!

Paying for Midwifery or Doula Support

There’s one thing I am a bit biased on, midwifery and doula support is worth the investment. However, that investment can be a bit challenging for my clients.

Here is some good news.

HOW DOES PAYMENT WORK?

I am not in-network for any insurance companies, but I am happy to provide you with a superbill if needed.

I want my care to be accessible for those who want it and I don’t want for cost to be a barrier to accessing my care.

With that being said, I offer discounts for those on Medicaid, Military, early pay, cash pay, and I also encourage barters.

Do not be afraid to reach out based on cost, we can usually find a way to make it work together!

If you are not currently pregnant, but hoping for a homebirth, consider signing up for a health share instead, see options below under health insurance.

For those looking for holistic midwifery or wellness care. I offer appointments weekly.

Sliding scale available for those who are currently uninsured, unemployed or on Medicaid.

Are you military? I offer a discount to Military families, I thank you Military for thier services. Must be able to provide proof with a dd-214.

BARTER AND TRADE

I am open to barter and trade for up to half of the total agreed upon fee for care.

The type and quantity of item and/or service you would like to offer in trade for midwifery care needs to be proposed and agreed on by all of us at the start of care, along with the timeline for when the barter payment will be completed. Some suggestions include:

firewood, log splitting, wood hauling/stacking
chimney sweeping
wallpaper removed and walls painted
bathroom remodeling
farm fresh meat (beef, pork, chicken), vegetables, or fruit
preserves, canned tomatoes, sauces, and other canned items
carpet torn up and floor installed
car paint repair
tree work or maintenance
landscaping and gardening
barn cleaned and wood shavings put down
trade work such as carpentry and electrical
small home improvements & reorganizing

SLIDING SCALE

For some excellent further reading on sliding scale use and intentions, please check out the Worts and Cunning Apothecary article by Alexis Cunningfolk.

40% DISCOUNT

Consider placing yourself in this part of the sliding scale if you and your family:

Regularly struggle to meet basic needs - food, housing, transportation, childcare, and healthcare
Will be less able to meet any of the basic needs above because of paying for midwifery care
Rely on payday loans and/or credit card debt to meet basic needs
Live paycheck to paycheck with no savings for non-essentials, extras or emergencies
Live in the lowest-rent options, stay with relatives/friends, and/or have unstable or inconsistent housing
Have limited, low-wage, and/or unstable income, or are unemployed
Don’t have relatives, friends, or extended community with financial resources who could support your midwifery care with gifts, donations, or loans
All of the above is by necessity not by choice. For example if you have access to family money and resources in times of need, work part-time by choice, and/or have a relatively high degree of earning power due to level of education (or gender and racial privilege, class background, etc.) but choose not to access that, please look at and consider the non-discounted fees below.

20% DISCOUNT

Consider placing yourself in this part of the sliding scale if you and your family:

Occasionally struggle to meet the basic needs above, but not regularly
Will have to stretch your basic needs budget to pay for midwifery care, but will not have to skip or choose between meeting any basic needs as a result
Have limited financial resources for any extras or emergencies beyond basic needs
Rarely or never buy new items because they are not affordable
Have relatives, friends, or extended community with limited financial resources who could only minimally support your midwifery care with gifts, donations, or loans, or could not offer any financial support
All of the above is by necessity not by choice. For example if you have access to family money and resources in times of need, work part time by choice, and/or have a relatively high degree of earning power due to level of education (or gender and racial privilege, class background, etc.) but choose not to access that, please look at and consider the non-discounted fees below.

LISTED FEES

The fees as listed cover the actual cost of care. Consider placing yourself in this part of the sliding scale if you and your family:

Do not struggle to meet the basic needs of food, housing, transportation, childcare, and healthcare, and paying for midwifery care will not change this
May have financial debts, but they do not prevent you from meeting the basic needs above
Will have to cut back or budget more tightly on non-essentials and extras to pay for midwifery care, such as eating out, buying a morning coffee/tea, new clothes, or vacation
Have some amount of savings for extras and emergencies
Have relatives, friends, or extended community with financial resources who could support your midwifery care with gifts, donations, or loans
Are able to have some choice in where you live (e.g. location, quality, price, or space) because of your available financial resources
Own your home or can pay for medium or higher quality rental housing
Can afford to take planned vacations, trips, and time off from work

DONATIONS TO SUPPORT SLIDING SCALE - PAYMENT ABOVE LISTED FEES

If you are in a position to make a donation and pay above the listed fees, this is a vital support to for more people have access to the type of health care they want and need. Families who donate above the listed fee are a key part of what allows me to continue to offer sliding scale and bartering options to as many families as possible. Any amount you pay above the listed fees will go directly to supporting the care of families receiving discounted fees.

20% above listed fees allows me to offer families the discounted care options above and services such as free pregnancy testing for those who need it.

40% above listed fees allows me to offer families the discounted care options above and services such as free pregnancy testing for those who need it, and the potential to expand the number of families I can offer these services to.

Please consider donating and paying above the listed fees if you and your family:

Will not need to cut back on extras or make any financial sacrifices to pay for midwifery care, such as eating out, buying a morning coffee/tea, new clothes, or vacation
Own more than one home
Can choose to do part-time paid work sometimes or all the time due to savings, investments, family money, or other means
Sometimes or regularly do not need to work for money due to savings, investments, family money, or other means
Can afford to take vacations, trips, and time off from work multiple times a year without needing to budget or save up for it
Have income from investments, trusts, or family money

Please be in touch with any questions!

HOW DO I TRANSFER CARE TO YOU?

Great! You’ve decided that a homebirth is the right choice for you and your family! There are two options:

Get your records from your current provider. It’s great to just have a copy for yourself, so let them know you’d like a copy of your records (any ultrasounds, labwork, prior labor and delivery report, and current prenatal chart) are all helpful to have. You can also have them emailed to me at mpoltests@gmail.com
Stay with your current hospital based care provider for collaborative care. You can continue appointments with them, most people do an abbreviated schedule of care for instance: 20 weeks for the anatomy scan, 28 weeks for GDM screening and 36 weeks for GBS testing. This is a great option especially for VBACs. In case you needed to transfer you would have an established relationship with this practice and your labwork/ ultrasounds would already be one file.

Health Insurance:

If you have a medical insurance policy with maternity care benefits, a portion of your care may be covered depending on the company and your individual policy. We are non-participating providers for most companies. It would be your responsibility to contact your company to find out what kind of coverage you might expect. After the baby is born, we will provide you with a statement of charges that you can submit it to your company per your agreement with them. Since we are out-of-network providers, any reimbursement from your company will be made to you, per your individual policy details.

We have worked with several Medical Sharing Companies very well and can help you comply with what they require to meet the standards referenced above. Some examples of highly recommended health shares that other clients of mine have used are, Samaritan Ministries, Christian Healthcare Ministries, and Zion Health. They cover homebirth midwifery care 100% and would cover a hospital transfer if necessary as well. They are a great alternative to traditional health insurance for those planning to give birth at home.

We have found the most luck with clients being reimbursed or paying outright with their Health Savings Account (HSA) or Flexible Spending Account (FSA).