What is a normal fee? I'm curious in different areas of the US what Midwives charge?
Thanks!
And how would a MW charge for a transferred birth?
Thanks!
And how would a MW charge for a transferred birth?
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$3500, no refund for transfers. My job as a midwife is to make sure that the client's baby is delivered safely, and sometimes that means using my skills and expertise to recognize the need medical intervention. When this happens, I have lived up to my obligation to their safety and I deserve to be paid in full. I do attend the delivery, even if I am no longer the primary attendant, and I continue to provide postpartum care.
Transport situations usually require more time and energy than if I had just delivered the baby. If I were to add all those fees up they usually come to much more than what they have already paid me. If they don't, I will give them a refund, but that's only happened once; we decided to transport as soon as I arrived, she delivered immediately at the hospital, and chose to continue seeing the doctor for followup. Even then the refund was only $400. What blew my mind about that situation was that if I weren't there she would not have gotten the only doctor in town who delivered vaginal breeches to come in on his day off to go out on a limb for someone he had never met. Can you put a price on avoiding an unncessary c-section? I guess you can: $400. |
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Our region is on the low end--about $1500., with a couple of mws actually charging as low as $1000 or even $500. But one of those makes it up by taking on more clients than she can really serve well; the other is well taken care of by her husband financially, considers her midwifery work to be a ministry that she cannot demand fair market payment for. I am strongly considering taking my fee up a good notch, since I mainly travel for prenatals and put a LOT of time into visits, ph calls, etc.
My contract states that in event of transfer to med care at any time before labor starts, they will receive refund prorated to number of visits and various specific charges that are on the fee sched. If transfer happens AFTER labor's onset, then I get full fee. But I think maybe I should charge a refundable $500 fee for 'in case of transport'! (refunded after normal homebirth). Because for one thing, transfers are MORE work and worry for me, both during and following birth. And for another, it would weed out those who want to 'try' homebirth but aren't committed to the self-care, self-informing, and responsibility involved. I'm getting better at weeding those out before choosing to work with that kind of fam....but I'm only 1/2 joking about that refundable transport fee! Anyway, remember that fees will vary not just by region and general economics, but for other reasons as well. Some mws who charge more, are also able to offer more services--suturing, labs, whatever, the expenses and time investment of which are part of that global fee. Some mws who charge more, are charging on the basis of their reputation, whether or not they offer more services (and thus incur greater expenses with those added services). |
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Our region is on the low end--about $1500., with a couple of mws actually charging as low as $1000 or even $500. But one of those makes it up by taking on more clients than she can really serve well; the other is well taken care of by her husband financially, considers her midwifery work to be a ministry that she cannot demand fair market payment for. I am strongly considering taking my fee up a good notch, since I mainly travel for prenatals and put a LOT of time into visits, ph calls, etc.
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This is directed more toward the midwives, but when you made the decision on what to charge, what did you base that on?
Did you have a business plan/budget (3 or 5 year) with all expenses figured in, including a salary for yourself, or was it more what everyone else is charging/what the market will bear? How did you decide which one to use? |
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