When it comes to a Home Birth many people are curious about the cost. Did we choose this route because we are “poor” and can’t afford Health Insurance? I want to answer this question by breaking down our most current Home Birth cost to give readers an idea of what we have to pay. Do we even have Health Insurance? If so, will they cover any of the costs I list below? I will also reflect back on some of our previous Home Births costs as those expenses have been different each time even though we have had the same Midwife for the first 5 babies. Keep reading to find out what our home birth cost with Baby #6.
Do We Even Have Health Insurance with This Pregnancy?
YES, we do have Health Insurance with this pregnancy. It is currently through Sam’s place of employment. Now to be truthful we have not always had Health Insurance in past pregnancies. That is always a stressful reality in case a Home Birth does not go as planned. The medical debt you rack up could take years to pay off. Thankfully our Home Births whether if we had Health Insurance coverage or not have always been very smooth.
The pregnancies without Health Insurance, were usually during seasons of unemployment or job transition where the Health Insurance coverage doesn’t kick in for 60 to 90 days. This reality was with Baby #4 and Baby #5. Both Home Births cost us $4000 for the Midwife services. This includes Prenatal Visits, Labor and Delivery, as well as Postpartum Care. Plus, roughly $500 for the 20-week Anatomy Scan. Additionally, the cost of Birthing Supplies which depends on what you may already have on hand could be $100- $200. Those Home Births ended up costing us almost $5000. Which we covered by paying a little out of pocket every visit over the course of the pregnancy.
Doctor Appointment in Louisiana and Blood Work $35+
When we found out we were expecting Baby #6 we were living in Louisiana at the time. In Louisiana you are required to have a pregnancy confirmed by a Doctor. If you are found in good health, then you are able to move forward with a Home Birth. This was a new thing for me as all 5 of our children were born in Tennessee and this is not a law there. With my previous pregnancies I was able to reach out to a Midwife right away. Then schedule that first visit at 12-week to confirm the pregnancy and hear a heartbeat.
For this confirmation appointment with a Doctor, Health Insurance did cover the bulk of the cost, and we only had to pay a $35 Copay during the visit. I also had to have bloodwork drawn during this appointment, and Health Insurance covered that as well.
Midwife in Louisiana $400
We moved to Georgia when I was 20 weeks along, so we did have two visits with Midwife in Louisiana before then. This included her checking on the baby’s heartbeat, growth, checking my weight and blood pressure. We would also discuss if I was having any issues or questions.
Before we relocated to Georgia the Midwife in Louisiana sent us a bill for the two visits we had with her. She charged $200 a visit. We paid the $400 out of pocket. Then I filed a claim with Health Insurance which the total we paid went toward our deductible.
20 Week Anatomy Scan Ultrasound $250
We scheduled our 20-week Anatomy Scan ultrasound right after we moved to Georgia as I was already slightly past 20 weeks. Our Georgia Midwife referred us to an Ultrasound technician she frequently worked with and from there an appointment was made.
We paid for this appointment out of pocket as well. I also filed a claim with Health Insurance and this total too went toward our deductible.
Midwife in Georgia $5000
This was the total cost for Prenatal Appointments, Home Birth and Postpartum Care Visits from myself and the Baby. We started out by seeing the Midwife for monthly visits beginning at 26 weeks. Those increased to twice a month around 32 weeks and weekly visit beginning at 36 weeks.
We paid the Midwife a minimum of $500 a visit or more depending on what our Budget allowed that given week. Most Midwives require you to pay them in full by 37 weeks or upon the Baby’s arrival. After the Birth they or you will file with Health Insurance to see what they are willing to cover. If a Midwife is not considered In-Network with your Insurance, you can call them before the Birth to ask for an exception. It is always worth an ask because most Health Insurance Companies will allow an exception once a year.
After your Home Birth, if you have filed with your Health Insurance and they agree to the exception then they will send your Midwife a check covering what they are willing to pay for the Birth. From there your Midwife would reimburse you. This was the case with Baby #2 and #3 for us. We received roughly $2000+ back with each birth as Health Insurance had us reach our Individual deductible first before they would cover the remaining balance of the Home Birth.
Birthing Supplies and Other Items Needed throughout Pregnancy $250+
With every Home Birth there will be supplies you may have to buy during pregnancy and then again for the Home Birth and postpartum care. For this particular birth I had to purchase…
Glucose Monitor Kit which cost $30ish from Amazon. Rather than drink pink goo I chose to track my glucose levels at home over the course of three days.
Vitamins and Supplements $200+ I always purchase Iron Supplements to help my body leading up to the birth and postpartum. This time around I had to purchase some additional Supplements and Vitamins to help with my Glucose Fasting Numbers as they did not want to cooperate during the third trimester.
Birthing Kit $70. This was something our Georgia Midwife put together consisting of the items she wanted us to have on hand at the Birth and for Postpartum care.
Additional Birthing Supplies $100. Like I mentioned before there will be times that you have some supplies listed already on hand, such as trash bags, wash clothes or towels, paper towels, etc. I only had to buy a few items of the Birthing Supplies list because of what we already had at home.
Insurance to Pay Back $
We did request that Insurance make an exception and allow our Georgia Midwife to be considered In Network. After paying her the $5000 in full by 40 weeks we are waiting to see what our Health Insurance will choose to cover.
Home Birth Cost with Baby #6 Total
In total we paid roughly $6000 out of pocket and like I mentioned above we are waiting to see what our Health Insurance will choose to cover. I will come back later and update this post if we are reimbursed for any of the costs listed above.
Curious to read about our other Home Birth experiences? Then head over to our Home Birth page on the blog. Or if you have additional questions about a Home Birth or what it cost then please leave your question in the comments.
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