Stupid questions about "oops"ing ...

[EmmysMama]

What, exactly, do you do afterward?

Obviously, you file for a birth certificate, take the baby to the ped if that's your plan, and schedule a 6-week postpartum checkup for yourself if you want.

But how does that work?

I've read that having prenatal care makes it easier to file for a birth certificate. Unless you rush to the hospital afterward to really make it look like an "oops", how does that make it easier? Don't you still have to do it yourself?

And taking the baby to the ped ... when DD was born the hospital gave me a form with her info on it to give to DH's work, so she could be added to the insurance. We dropped it off, they added her, we had her insurance card within a week and the ped asked for it when we went. Do you just pay out of pocket or what, if you don't have that? (I mean you'd be able to add them later once you get the BC but I'm still wondering how that first visit goes.)

As for the six-week postpartum checkup, I've read several people say they just call and say "I had the baby, he/she has seen the ped, I need to schedule my six-week postpartum visit" and that's that. Well, what do you say when your OB asks why you didn't rush to the hospital after the birth? Why you didn't call 911? Don't they ask? I can't imagine mine not asking!

I can't figure out how it all works. Maybe I'm really dense or something.

[doulawoman]

I am not sure. I'm in Canada and have midwives here, so I will probably just call them shortly after the birth or something.

[Captain_Crunch]

Originally Posted by EmmysMama

And taking the baby to the ped ... when DD was born the hospital gave me a form with her info on it to give to DH's work, so she could be added to the insurance. We dropped it off, they added her, we had her insurance card within a week and the ped asked for it when we went. Do you just pay out of pocket or what, if you don't have that? (I mean you'd be able to add them later once you get the BC but I'm still wondering how that first visit goes.)

I just handed the receptionist the card with my name and paid the co-pay.

My insurance covers the baby for 60 days after the birth w/o documentation. They know it takes time to get the b/c and ssn. I'm pretty sure they also understand that with a newborn filling out the forms they require to add a new member to the plan isn't exactly at the top of your list.

I wouldn't flat out tell the Ped it was a UC (oops or otherwise) , I would say that it was a homebirth and leave it at that.

[BanditaMamacita]

No idea what others have done, but here's my plan. I plan to call the dr's office after the birth to say that we had the baby faster than we expected, that she is healthy and fine and so am i. When they push me to rush to the ER, which i'm sure they will, I'm just going to state the truth... That i'm not bringing a healthy, normal baby into an ER filled with germs in the middle of flu season for them to poke and prod her with unnecessary tests entirely bc she was born at home, but that we will glady change our minds if we see anything to be concerned about. I'm hoping they will send one of the mw's out to check on me at home, which is what is usually done the day after a birth center birth (the plan, as they know it). I also plan to bring the baby to the ped a day or two after the birth, depending on how we're all doing. The plan is to give the same story... The birth was too fast, all parties were fine, and we decided it was more dangerous to bring her to the ER than to stay home. I'm afraid to claim it was a straight homebirth, because they'll ask for a midwife's name, i'm sure, and i dont have a real one to give.

As far as prenatal care helping with the birth certificate, i think it only helps as proof of pregnancy, which some states will require for a UC birth certificate. Have you called the office of vital records in your state? They should be able to tell you what you'll need, tho be prepared for them to act clueless and/or rude.

[Kidzaplenty]

I just call my OB (if I have not already fired them) and tell them that I had the baby at home, he/she came much faster than I had anticipated. And then I tell them that since everything went so easily, I have already called the pedi and seen or scheduled a visit. I then set up my six week appt, if I want it. If I am not planning a six week visit, I just never call the OB in the first place.

As for the insurance for the baby, I just give them my cards. The baby is covered under them for a while (30-60 days).

[Sheryl1678]

I ran into a lot of snags getting the BC (in Wisconsin) because I couldn't get the local public health nurse to fill out the state forms because she insisted that my child "needed medical attention".

It wasn't her place to refuse or make those statements and it caused a lot of problems. Eventually the BC people were very helpful in locating a local midwife who would complete the forms for a fee.

I didn't take my baby to a ped so that didn't matter.

[djinneyah]

BC requirements vary from state to state....here's my rundown of what we did.

i went UP, no doc appts at all. i asked around and found a homebirth-friendly pedi, but waited to call and make an appt until after baby was born. meanwhile, i looked up the BC filing requirements for my state (NE). after baby was born, i called the pedi at 1 week postpartum to make an appt for a once-over at 2 weeks. i brought her in, when they asked why they didn't have records, i told them simply she was born at home.

of course, they asked questions: what happened? did you call 911? blah blah...i gave everyone a standard story that it happened too fast to make it to the hospital, and we were more concerned with catching the baby than calling 911, and that she seemed to be doing so well after she was born, we didn't worry about it and just kept a close eye on her. i didn't feel the need to bring her in any earlier than 2 weeks because i didn't want to expose her to a bunch of germs before she'd had a chance to get her immune system running a little. i asked for a once-over and a referral for PKU testing (absolutely required by law in our state) and a hearing screen. they were happy to do so and never gave me any troubles.

i took her for her testing, and they sent the results to Vital Statistics, where i then went to pick up the BC paperwork. NE doesn't require proof of pregnancy if you file within the first year after the birth. i filed paperwork for BC and SS# (they included the paperwork in the packet) and had a BC and SSC in about a month.

can't help with the insurance question, since we don't have any. good luck!