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Our primary goal is to offer a comprehensive, affordable alternative to institutional maternity care. On average nationwide, Birth Center care costs 30% less than clinic/hospital care, and more time is spent face-to-face with the client throughout pregnancy, birth and the post-partum period! Morning Star works with insured and uninsured women. We will help you find out what your insurance maternity benefits are, and help you make the most of your benefits. Our medical billers are specialists in maternity care billing and offer guidance and clarification on all of those confusing “EOB’s”, or Explanation of Benefit forms. We also understand that many uninsured women and families are rightfully concerned about the cost of having a baby! Morning Star Birth Center helps uninsured families by offering Timely Payment and Financial Hardship discounts.

Babies CAN Be Affordable
We also offer payment plans and guidance on other creative ways to help you finance your care. We believe that having a baby shouldn’t break the bank! The Timely Payment discount caps the cost of care at $3,750-$5,000 for professional midwifery services given to Mother and Baby during pregnancy, birth and post-partum. It limits the facility charges for Mother and Baby to $1,250-$1,500. The Financial Hardship discount can be applied and utilized in different ways, both for insured and uninsured families. This means that if you are paying out-of-pocket for your health care, we can apply the Timely Payment discount, and then reduce the cost additionally by applying the Financial Hardship discount based on the family’s need or circumstance. If an insured family demonstrates or requests a financial hardship discount, that discount can be applied by reducing or waiving co-pays associated with insurance claims. These are applied on a case-by-case basis, so please ask if you want to explore that option! Charges are submitted to your insurance company at our Standard Rates.

*When we bill for care of Mother and Baby (they are separate), the charges average between $7,500and $9,500. In the end, it’s up to the family to decide how to prioritize the way their money is spent. We don’t believe insurance companies should dictate how and where women give birth and are committed to helping families get the care that’s right for them. The birth of a baby is only experienced a few times in a woman’s lifetime. It’s worth finding out how to make it as good as it can be!


Scenarios:

- Ex: Mother’s care covered at 80% after $1,000 deductible. Baby’s care not covered. Mother’s charges: $6,000. Patient responsibility: $1,000(deductible) + $1,000 (co-pay) Baby’s charges: $1,200Total charge $7,200 Financial hardship demonstrated, Baby’s charges reduced to $600. Total out-of-pocket cost: $2,600

- Ex: Hospital birth covered at 80/20. Mother experiences the usual interventions (induction, epidural, pitocin, electronic fetal monitoring, meds to negate side-effects of epidural, vaccum extractor, newborn resuscitation, extended hospital stay, etc…). Cost- $20,000. Birth Center care covered at 60/40. Normal birth, no interventions. Cost- $8,000. Do the math: Patient responsibility for hospital birth $4,000, for BC $3,200