Midwifery Care
Pregnancy, Birth, Postpartum & Baby care
I offer midwifery care to a diverse group of people and families. Appointments take place both in client’s homes and in the comfortable midwifery space which I share with three other midwives. Your support person or people & children are most welcome to come to your appointments & to be as involved in your care as you’d like.
I’m careful to keep my midwifery practice small so I can ensure that my clients receive high-quality, personalized care. While I am your primary midwife and will see you for all of your pregnancy and postpartum visits, I also work closely with other midwives, physicians, and healthcare practitioners in the community and will provide you with lots of information and local resources during our work together.
Want to meet with me to learn more?
- Claire Barrett Bettler, Community Midwife
First, we schedule a free virtual/phone consultation where you ask the questions you have about my style of care and I ask you about things that affect whether or not I can provide your pregnancy care (again, community-based midwifery care is only safe for clients with low-risk pregnancies). This allows us both to make an informed decision about working together for your pregnancy and birth. Habla español? Ofrezco servicios de partería en español.
Midwifery care during your pregnancy:
If we feel that it’s a good fit, we begin your prenatal care with regular visits. During each visit, in addition to answering your questions & checking on baby’s growth, I offer guidance about healthy pregnancy adaptations, safe herbs & supplements, and self-care for you and your family.
Appointments last 30-60 minutes and are scheduled monthly ‘til 28 weeks, then every two weeks ‘til 36wks, then weekly until you give birth. At least one of these visits (usually around 36 weeks) takes place where you plan to give birth.
Midwifery care during your labor and birth:
Once you’re at 37 weeks, I keep my phone on and am ‘on call’ for you until you have your baby. When labor starts, we’re in touch and I provide support and ideas for ways to help your labor progress. When labor is active, I bring my birth supplies and birth assistant and settle in for your labor & birth. I always prefer to have a second midwife or trained assistant with me for births. The midwives I ask to do this are carefully selected, and I try to arrange for you to meet during the last month of your pregnancy if you feel this is important to you.
Care after your birth:
After you give birth, I carefully assess you and your baby to make sure you’re both doing well. I usually stay at least 3-4 hours after your birth, but don’t worry - I won’t need to be entertained; this is usually when I sit in the kitchen & enjoy a cup of tea while catching up on charting and checking in with you every once in a while! I also do a complete newborn exam during this time. Before I leave, I make sure you have my contact info handy so you can call if questions come up.
Over the next few days, I come back to your home to check in with you & offer the recommended metabolic and cardiac screenings for your baby that we’ve talked about during your pregnancy. We schedule follow-up visits over the next two weeks and a 6 week appointment at my office. During our final midwifery visit, in addition to checking you & baby, we also talk about family planning and recommended health screenings. If needed, I collect additional labs at this visit. Finally, I remind you that I can continue to provide your annual reproductive/gyn health care if you’d like!
Midwife Fees and Insurance Coverage
I work hard to charge fair prices for services and meet the financial needs of my clients. I’m able to accept cash, check, card payments and Venmo/paypal, & I’m in network with some insurance companies - including all NM Centennial plans. Coverage for services varies from plan to plan, so I recommend that you ask your insurance company directly about what they will cover. Payment and individualized plans are available as needed.
Home Birth Midwifery Package (prenatal, labor, postpartum & newborn care): $4800.
- This includes a $350 registration fee which is due by 20 weeks. This is because I am only able to take a limited number of clients per due month, so it ‘reserves’ your spot as my client.
- We are fortunate in NM that quite a few insurance carriers cover some costs for home birth, including all Centennial/Medicaid plans. Please talk to me about whether this applies to you (and if so, let your insurance carrier know how cool this is!)
- For insured clients, labs & ultrasounds are billed directly to your insurance. For self-pay clients, you will need to cover these costs but I will work with you to figure out the most affordable way to do this.
- It’s fine to pay me over the course of your pregnancy rather than all at once. Please keep me posted about your financial needs/situation.
- Please complete payment by 36wks of pregnancy. This allows me to pay for supplies & an assistant in preparation for your birth.
Prenatal Care only (with plan to birth elsewhere): $1500
Home-based Postpartum Care (includes 6-8 postpartum home visits): $600