Is it better to contact insurance co before or after birth?

[lemontree]

I am 20 weeks and planning a homebirth with wonderful midwives. It is my first baby.

We have been paying the midwife out of pocket at every appt, with the intention of attempting to get reimbursed from my insurance after the baby is born. I'm assuming we will get some sort of "superbill" from the midwives...

But going through this forum is making me wonder if I should be in contact with my insurance co NOW? My midwife never asked for insurance info so I am thinking that it's standard for the mothers to deal with their insurance on their own?

TIA!

[melamama]

You should do a search on hb and insurance. I'm pretty sure there was one in the last few months. I remember something that someone advised against notifying the insurance co. before the birth, as that could possibly stir up problems.

Depending on your state and your mw's certification they will probably bill the insurance co. globally after the birth. Ask your mw how things usually go in your state and with your insurance co. They will be able to share their experiences. They may even know what % your co. covers. Many mw's also now use a billing service to deal with the insurance co. that makes things easier for them and you.

In my 3 previous hb the mw billed the insurance co. after the birth, and we got reimbursed in a month or so.