homebirth cost?

[babykaoss]

so how much does the average homebirth cost?

i'm getting more and more uncomfortable as each day goes by with the thought of going to the hospital to give birth, even though i have been seeing a CNM. i'm finding myself longing for the chance to stay home, not have to leave my 2 year old dd......or the comfort of my home........but i know with our current financial situation (living paycheck to paycheck) there is no way we could afford to pay out of pocket for it. we have medicaid that's covering costs and takes a lot of stress off of us.......but lately i am feeling a lot of unrest and lack of peace about the situation.

what can you guys tell me? help? advice?

[ashleep]

nak

out of pocket $1000. she would have taken payments, but our financial situation at the time allowed us to pay it all at once. insurance said they would cover 60%, and then when it came down to it they tried to get out of paying. : But eventually she got paid by ins.

my best friend just had a HB and her MW was very flexible w/ payments too. THey traded babysitting and house repairs for a few payments taken off.

It would be worth checking with the MWs in your area. Good luck!

[TrishWSU]

My WA state medicare paid 100% of my homebirth. But my midwife's total fees (all prenatal to 6 weeks PP) was $2800. She had very flexible payment plans if I hadn't had insurance. I'd assume that since you'd only require a few months of care, that there would be a reduced cost for care.

Good luck, I hope you get the birth you want!

[cottonwood]

Six and eight years ago, my births with different midwives in the same area were each $1500, one paid by medicaid, one out of pocket. I think that is pretty much on the low end for this area now, back then it was mid-range, and I believe they both charge more now.

We were living paycheck to paycheck too when we paid out of pocket, luckily we were able to pay for it out of our tax return. But our midwife also did sliding scale and trade for other services, bless her heart! Maybe you can find something like that. Or heck, consider an unassisted birth, that would cost you nothing!

[jplain]

It'll depend a lot on where you live. The cost variation is huge!

Two years ago, DD's homebirth cost $2400.
We'll be paying $2800 for this one.

Many midwives have a sliding scale based on your ability to pay. Many are also very flexible about payment plans, allowing you to spread out payments, even after baby's birth. Anything you could barter? That's another option to discuss.

Carolyn

[crunchymomof2]

Homebirth with a traditional midwife isnt exactly legal here so ins wouldnt cover it. But it was only $2000. And she was extremely flexible with us. We just got her paid and my baby is 3 months old. She was great about it especially since my husband was out of work for over a month during my pregnancy then we had to try to catch up everything.

[UmmBnB]

Mine hb's $1800 and $2600. Her prices went up a lot in 4 years but for my first she was pricing much much lower than others in the area.

The first time around I wasn't stretched as tight and was able to pay it, via a payment plan, by 36 weeks.

This time around we ended up paying about $1000 out of pocket in monthly installments, taking a loan for $1100 and bartering the rest (dh is a carpenter and she had a small job that needed doing).

While we obviously paid interest on the loan it was 100% worth it and since I took the loan from my retirement savings I paid the majority of the interest back to my account with only 1% going to the administrator.

There would have been no way I could have gone from having one perfect hb to having a hospital birth for my second.

[alegna]

Around here it ranges from ~$2000- $4500 I would do ANYTHING I had to to have a homebirth though. I'd sell off stuff and rack up credit card debt to do it.

-Angela

[foehnjye]

We are paying $2500. Our insurance will pay 80% of that.
Given the level of care, I can't imagine it any other way!

[ZeldasMom]

We are paying $2400.

[teachinmaof3]

My last birth (3rd baby, 1st homebirth) was around $2000. About $1920 of that was the mw's fees + birth kit, the rest was lab fees, one u/s, and extra birth supplies that I wanted.

This time I'm using the same mw that was here for my birth last time...she was the apprentice w/ my last one and ended up being here on her own (her first solo birth ). Anyway....b/c of our history we've made a deal for fees and bartering.

I'd interview a few and ask about payment plans and bartering.

[kote80]

well we are going to pay a total of about 1700-1800, from about 31 wks preggo, that doesn't include birth kit. 300-400 of that is for the assistant fee, because the primary MW isn't cpm yet and her assistant is her training MW. We are paying less tho I think than we would we because she doesn't have her CPM yet, most others in the area were about 2500-2800 I believe.

[kote80]

I was wonder, do these totals include prenatal care?

[Aka mommy]

Our midwives standard cost is $3500 but thankfully our insurance will be covering 75% of that since its being deemed out of network. We have been able to make monthly payments and have been living paycheck to paycheck. But it is sooooooo worth it. I think i would refinance on a home just to have a homebirth because the care is so different and the sigh a relief we can take is worth it!

[AutumnMama]

The birth fee was $1,200. The visits cost $35 a piece and the birth kit was around $50.
WAY cheaper than a hospital birth around here! (at least $5,00, and that's if you have NO interventions/meds/etc).

If you're feeling uncomfortable then I think you should listen to that...it won't hurt to go check out a midwife (or two, if you have them) in your area and see how you feel with her/them.

After having a hospital birth with my first, and a midwife attended home birth with my second I'd personally say homebirth midwife all the way!!

Good luck with your decision


Also, I second asking the midwife if she can work with your finances...most are very willing to...they're in the business of helping families have better births; not everyone can afford it though and I think they know that and can help you find a way to do it .

[crsta33]

We went from Medicaid to out of pocket for a homebirth. I think our total was $2345...Medicaid in Mississippi doesn't cover homebirth, but our CNM will file for it anyway. Also, she prorated her fees b/c I came to her late in the pg and we got a discount for paying the entire amount by 28 weeks.

We racked up credit card debt. We got a 0% interest rate until July...hopefully we'll be able to pay it off by then.

Christa

[selazenby]

We're paying $3650 for our homebirth - this includes all prenatals. We do have to buy supplies for the birth separate from that. For us, we basically pay all out of pocket. We have a Health Savings Account - so we pay out of that account but it's still "our money" that we're paying out. But as a previous poster said, it's so so so worth it to us - and I would pay more if I had to!

[2+twins]

My guess is that in the middle of the country, especially in less city-ish areas, homebirth prices probably average in the $2000 range. But where I live (heavily populated city area where *everything* costs more) I'll be paying $4500. My last birth with the same mw, just under 2 years ago cost $4000, and my birth prior to that with her just short of 5 years ago was $3000. So it's really gone up in a relatively short period of time. For this birth and the last we're stuck paying entirely out-of-pocket. Not even sure how I'm going to do it this time but there's no other option for me - I wouldn't birth in the hospital unless there was some huge glaring medical reason to do so. So we'll find a way. Good luck! Oh, and those fees didn't include any testing aside from the pee dip stick at the prenatal visits, or anything else like the birth kit, birth tub, etc.

[MamaTaraX]

Our MW is $1800. This includes all prenatals, the birth,and six weeks of post-partum care (she does like 4 post-partum visits).
Birth Kit -- DOn't know yet, $75?
Tub -- we are renting a tub froma friend and she's giving us a discount, so $150
Total: approximately $2025

We're paying for it all out of pocket. We saved for it. We will pay the midwife all at once so we don't forget and have loose ends, tub too. We do not have insurance,but I think our MW can try to file with insurance for those who do after the birth. She's been trying to talk to Medicaid people to get them to cover for a while. That'd be nice

To be honest, if we didn't save, we couldn't afford thisbirth. I can't say I'd be willing to go into major debt to pay for a birth. (a la Angela's reply). I'd probably go back to the birth centre where we wnt last time or birth at the hospital where I work and mnake the birth work for me if we honestly coudln't afford it. I'm very glad that we can.

Namaste, Tara
mama to Doodle (7), Butterfly (2), and Rythm (due at home 1/06)

[BethSLP]

We are in Houston and my MW costs $5200. She is quite famous here and has 27 years experience and delivered 1500 babies. Her assistant (a direct entry midwife) is $3500.

I am willing to pay for Pat as i feel she is well worth it.

The price includes all prenatal visits and birth classes.

XOXOXO
Beth