Many parents are interested in whether doula services are covered by their insurance. The short answer is no. However, there are a few different things to be aware of…
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Some states offer Medicaid coverage of doulas, but it’s not what it seems.
There are several states that are working on expanding Medicaid including doulas. While this sounds like a good idea in theory, in practice it doesn’t work very well. They try to pay doulas at a very low rate (like $100-300) and require them to provide not only prenatal and birth support, but also multiple postpartum support visits. This level of in-home support that a doula must travel to provide hours, can easily add up to over $1200 depending on geographic area and experience level. With childcare, gas, and other overhead costs, the doula essentially has to pay out of pocket for the privilege of providing services, without earning any income to support her family. This is a disproportionate number of earning opportunities for low-income women who want to support themselves in a career they are passionate about. Women who get doulas through Medicaid, are not getting high quality, experienced, and certified doulas who can provide serious help because career doulas don’t earn poverty wages. Nothing like this is happening, or scheduled to happen, in Kansas as far as I know. I’m certainly open to working with insurance companies if they want to pay my staff enough to keep their lights on and heat on.
2. Insurance Reimbursement Happens, But Don’t Breathe
Occasionally, a person is successful in getting at least partially reimbursed by their insurance company for doula services. After the birth, some parents write a letter to their insurance company detailing the costs saved by hiring a doula. For example, if you had a vaginal birth instead of a Cesarean, or no epidural, and you attribute these results to having doula support, you can really put a dollar value that we save on them. Some of the information included in the letter may be our doula certification information, Tax ID number, and the receipt for services. I would personally try this method regardless, as it can’t hurt anything to try – but I wouldn’t count on receiving reimbursement. Consumer demand is the best way to make changes in any industry, including maternity care.
I get a lot of emails about doula NPI numbers and CPT codes. There are blogs and such that occasionally go around saying that you can be covered by insurance if your doula can get an NPI number and CPT code. Although there are existing codes that have the word “doula”, our concern is that they are more commonly used for midwifery and the whole system implicitly says that they are for health care providers and medical services – which we emphatically do NOT. We want to stay away from anything that could be considered insurance fraud and practicing medicine without a license. According to an insurance billing professional I know, past claims are being “flagged” for involving practitioners not licensed by the state. (Doula is an unlicensed, unregulated profession)
3. Christian Healthcare Sharing Services DO Cover Doulas
Christian health care sharing services like Samaritan Ministries and similar, pay $500 of your birth or postpartum doula expenses. We provide an itemized receipt for you to send and get paid.
4. Other Payment Methods for Doula Services
We have several different options for you if it’s difficult to make room in the budget for the full cost of doula services up front. We really want to work with everyone who wants support for their pregnancy, birth and postpartum.
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We are approved providers that accept HSA and Flex payments. We can also accept partial HSA payment and partial cash or credit card payment, just let us know how to invoice you.
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Payment plans. We are happy to split your balance into monthly payments. If you contact us earlier in your pregnancy, it can make your monthly payment affordable!
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Infant enrollment option. We can set up your own special webpage link for your friends and family to help contribute to your doula fund. You receive 100% of contributions.
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Consider our childbirth class or consultation if the cost of a doula is simply not feasible for you. The 3 hour class teaches you and your partner lots of information about managing labor and birth, while the 45 minute consultation can provide some laser details on your birth plan and birth location.
