Insurance WON'T cover homebirth... - Page 2

[Maltagirl]

I have TriCare (I'm on active duty in the Army) and they will not pay a dime because they consider the care they provide in my military hospital "acceptable." (Yeah, to who?)

Anyway, our midwife is charging us $4000 all told (I still get my labs and stuff done with the OBs that are free for me and they don't know I'm not delivering with them) and the midwfe is accepting $250/month since we're paying out of pocket...we'll be finished paying her off just before our baby (due in a few weeks) turns one.

I consider it an investment in my own health and safety, not to mention an experience I really want. I mean, how many times will I give birth in my life?

[True Blue]

Anna's mamma -- do you know Tricare does cover homebirth with a CNM? There were no CNM's near me so I have a licensed midwife and will pay out of pocket. Are you on prime? I think even so you can fight it. Oh I see you are the active duty....still try to fight it if you can. I have 2 active duty friends who were in the catchment area for the base we used to live by (we are Coast Guard, so it was an AFB we were in catchment for) and they both were able to have their babies at local hospitals with civilian OB's.

[jraohc]

Originally Posted by SamuraiEarthMama

it always surprises me that someone will happily plunk down 15 grand for a car, but then complain that 2 grand is too much for a homebirth...

This is an old thread, but it's one that interests me - especially this comment. I'm perfectly willing and happy to pay for the birth that I want. I'd be much happier plunking down $$'s for a midwife than a car. I don't think midwives, especially those who aren't affiliated with a hospital get paid enough. However, the difference for me is that while I believe the midwife deserves to be paid, I find it tough to justify that expense when I'm already paying for insurance which "should" be paying the midwife a reasonable amount for the services she is providing.

Before getting pregnant I didn't really think about the financial aspect of birth because I knew my insurance covered pregnancy and childbirth. I never thought about the fact that it might be monetarily cheaper to have the baby in a hospital or that I might want to use a birthcenter or even have the baby at home. When I got pregnant, I didn't realize quite how important it would be to have the baby where I wanted to have it, and the idea of paying more $$'s for something I had already paid for was difficult to understand. Now that I'm thinking about it, and now that I know a birthcenter will be more expensive than a hospital, and that home will be most expensive of all, I am planning for that for next time. Before I even start ttc, I will plan for the expense of birth.

So, I don't think $2000 is too much, and I'm certain that a good midwife is worth every cent and MUCH more, but I still have difficulty paying for something that I feel like I've already paid for when I pay out hundreds for insurance every year and when that insurance would pay for an expensive hospital birth.

[ChristaN]

Although my insurance wouldn't cover a homebirth midwive & said that they didn't cover any midwives, they did pay the same for a Certified Nurse Midwife as they would have for a Dr. b/c the CNM had an agreement with an OB where the OB was on-call for any problems & the billing went through the OB's office under the OB's name.

Both of my girls were born at a hospital, but at least I had a midwife (although not a homebirth one). I was much happier with the midwife who delivered my second dd, though, as she was much less medically oriented (less into interventions), so I would screen carefully if you decide to go the CNM route.

[nancy926]

mamid --

I have Aetna and they covered DD's birth in a freestanding birth center (no drs, only midwives). We had an HMO and paid $20 total.

I am considering homebirth and am sure they would say they don't cover it, but I'd still have my mw submit the claims and see what happens.

Nancy

[orangebird]

Originally Posted by pamamidwife

I've had clients that were told "NO WAY" to a homebirth, but when I billed, I was able to reimburse them 70-80% of my fee! Sometimes mentioning homebirth with insurance companies is a mistake - it's all about, "do you cover licensed midwives?" or something. It depends on which state you live in.

I wonder if I could try to get reimbursed for something pregnancy/birth relasted since my insurance doesn't cover pregnancy or birth at all nomatter what kind of providor I use. Like If I could just have the ultrasound place submit my bill and see if they pay. When I was on my group plan they would have paid for homebirth even though homebirth isn't covered, my midwife at the time was a Naturaopathic Physician who accepts BCBS so she would have just billed for the delivery, no mention of where the delivery took place. I bet the insurance company wouldn't even notice that they didn't get a claim from a hospital, I don't think they pay attention like that, yk? Unfortunately I have had to pay for both home deliveries out of pocket because by the time I had my first homebirth we had switched to an individual plan (not the group plan through work anymore) and they say no way no how will they cover pregnancy/birth. Kinda dumb if you ask me. Kindof cool though, are they saying that they don't think hospitals and OBs are necessary for a healthy pregnancy? If I get in trouble for having a homebirth (in Utah it is illegal for my midwife to assist me during pregnancy and birth except and only the actual catching of the baby as long as no fancy technique is used or else it would be practicing medicine without a licence. ) but so if we get in trouble can't I just say well obviously it is un necessary for me to have seen an OB or go to the hospital because then, being it is such a standard thing, my insurance should have paid for it, right? It seems that way, they don't feel it is necessary. I don't either. Wow, the first thing the insurance company and I agree on.