Do you want to hire a doula, but the cost is preventing you from doing so? We get it! At Mother Well, we want to see “a doula for every person who wants one,” but we also recognize that cost can be a barrier for some people. The good news? There are multiple ways to help pay for doula services! Below are a few ways we’ve compiled to help clients pay for the doula support they desire during pregnancy, labor, and postpartum.

How much does a doula cost?

But, first, how much will a doula cost you? I love the tool DoulaMatch.net for searching doulas in your area and what they’re charging. In and around Lexington, KY most doulas are charging between $750 – $1,600. Newer doulas will sometimes charge below that threshold. More experienced doulas, doulas who offer bundled services, or doula agencies might charge well above it.

There’s a fairly good consensus that the national average doula cost is between $800 and $2,500.

In some cases, a doula’s fee might only include their birth support services. (Or postpartum support, if they’re a postpartum doula!) Check with the doula you’re interested in hiring. Sometimes doula might bundle services such as a childbirth class or breastfeeding support with their fee.

Is a doula worth the cost?

Obviously this blog post will be a bit biased since it’s published on a doula website, but – YES!!!! We believe with 100% certainty that doulas are worth the cost. (And, rest assured, if finances are truly tight, there are doulas who provide services at low or no cost to you! More on that at the end.)

Doulas guide families to fulfill their individual desires for birth. A doula’s ultimate goal is to help moms experience a positive and safe birth through information and support. In pregnancy, a doula meets with clients to learn about their needs and desires for birth, make plans for birth, answer questions, and to provide assistance navigating the healthcare system. During labor, doulas provide physical comfort to mothers by way of pain relief techniques and suggestions to make labor progress smoothly. Doulas also provide emotional reassurance to mothers and their birth team. 

The Cochrane Review ‘Continuous support for women during childbirth’ found that people who received continuous labor support:

• may be more likely to give birth vaginally without vacuums or forceps
• may be less likely to use pain medications or to have a cesarean birth
• may be more likely to be satisfied with their birth experience
• may be more likely to have shorter labors
• may be less likely to have babies with a low five-minute Apgar scores (a measurement of the baby’s health at birth)
• may be less likely to have postpartum depression 
• and, to top it off, there were adverse effects found in using continuous labor support!

Postpartum doulas are worth considering, too! They help the family transition to life with a baby. “Postpartum doulas provide families information and support on infant feeding, emotional and physical recovery from childbirth, infant soothing, and coping skills for new parents. They might also help with light housework, fix a meal and help incorporate an older child into this new experience.” (Postpartum.net)

Hear what a Mother Well client had to say about the value of doula care: 

“Her presence was felt throughout my whole pregnancy, she sends you education, she checks in, even when you are just overwhelmed and need to vent – she’s there. Her support goes far beyond the delivery room…During my labor some complications arose and Victoria was there with all of her knowledge to guide us and help us make every decision with the most information so nothing was decided out of fear or pressure...When the world forgets about the mom who just gave birth and shifts focus to the baby she doesn’t forget about you. She validates your feelings and offers wisdom that is invaluable. She gives you the space to talk if you are ready but also stays at arms length if you aren’t. Hiring Victoria was the greatest investment I could have ever made and I wish every woman had access to her care and attention.” – Nichole

Doulas are certainly worth the investment! So let’s explore ways to pay for a doula!

Do doulas take insurance? Will my insurance cover doulas?

The primary way most people pay for medical or health related services is insurance. Unfortunately, many insurance companies don’t cover doula services yet, but some do! You can (and should!) call your insurance company to see whether they cover doula services. If they do, wonderful! While the Mother Well does not bill insurance, we can provide an invoice you can submit to your insurance company for reimbursement. 

Improving birth and maternal health in the US is increasingly in the national news, and in 2022, the Biden-Harris Administration announced a blueprint for maternal health which includes expanded access to doula care.There’s a growing movement to include doulas under Medicaid coverage. Currently, in our state of Kentucky, Humana Medicaid is the only mainstream insurance provider covering doula services through their Moms First program.

Health Saving Accounts (HSA) and Flexible Spending Accounts (FSA) will pay for doula services.

If your insurance company doesn’t cover doula services, does your plan include a health savings account or a flexible spending account? If so, that can also be a great way to pay for doula services. The Mother Well accepts HSA and FSA accounts for payment and can provide the necessary documentation should your insurance company request it.

Healthshare services and paying for doula care.

But what if your insurance doesn’t cover doula services and your plan doesn’t have an HSA/FSA account? No worries! We aren’t out of options yet! If insurance isn’t an option, utilizing a healthshare plan might be a viable option instead. Healthshare plans are cooperatives in which members agree to cover a portion of one another’s medical costs. There are many reputable healthshare companies out there that offer this option. A handful of health sharing companies have a faith-based element, such as Christian Health Ministries or Samaritan Ministries (not sponsored or affiliated). Religiously affiliated health sharing companies might be a benefit to some users and a drawback to others. Consider looking into some healthshare companies and see if there might be an option that fits you. In our experience, every client who has used a healthshare service was able to get their doula fee paid in full.

Give the gift of doula care.

While insurance, HSA/FSA accounts, and healthshare plans might work for some people, what if they don’t work for you? Consider asking friends and family to help you pay for doula services! Friends and family love to give cute gifts to expecting parents, but many of them enjoy giving useful gifts, too! Especially if you make that need known.

An easy way to let friends and family know doula services would be both an important and useful gift for you is to put a card in with your baby shower invitation. If you’ve seen the cards requesting books for babies in lieu of bringing cards to a shower, the idea is similar except you would be requesting monetary gifts to help pay for doula services (the Mother Well has a super cute template for this you can copy below!) 

Gifting is a particularly good option for parents who have already had children and have many of the baby items they need already. Don’t hesitate to use those friends and family

Add doula services to your baby registry.

If you don’t want to go the suggestion card route, you can also add doula services to your baby registry! There are many online registries that allow you to add requests for monetary gifts to be used toward items/services of your choosing. We love services like Babylist.com or GiveInKind.com that allow you to easily include what services would be helpful to your family. If you’ve ever seen a wedding registry with an option to give money for a honeymoon fund, this would work the same way except for doula services! 

In the event you aren’t having a baby shower or sprinkle, you can still let people know, as you’re comfortable, that, while gifts are not expected, contributing to your doula services fund would be a wonderful gift if they choose to get you one. 

The Mother Well offers Gift Certificates friends and family can purchase to cover some or all of the cost of doula services if they want.

 Sliding-scale doula fees or volunteer doula services.

What if there’s very little money to go around? The good news is that doulas do provide services on a sliding-scale or volunteer basis!

Some independent doulas will offer a sliding-scale, either as a rule or an exception to their services. 

Even still, some individual doulas or non-profit doula organizations solely provide doula care on a volunteer basis and would not ask their clients to pay out of pocket. These doulas might have grant money or host fundraisers to cover the expenses of providing services. Though, in some cases, these doulas are not being funded by outside sources and are simply providing services because they feel compelled to do so.

Please be mindful that doulas who are not charging full-price still have bills to pay. Clients may not take on the cost of doula care in volunteer situations, but doulas very much have a cost of giving those services to clients. The cost of providing doula care includes: initial training and continuing education, travel and expenses, personal and/or business taxes, and daily business expenses.

If you use a sliding-scale or volunteer doula service, ask your doula how you can give back to them! Sharing about their work so others can support it, providing a wonderful testimonial and photos for the doula to use in future marketing or providing a service that they need like graphic design or office organization are all great ways!

For those folks who are under-resourced, low or no cost doula care is available. Ask around! You might be surprised by what’s in your area.

Scholarships for doula care.

In some states, funding is available via scholarships! You can search for terms like:

• (state) birth doula fund
• (state) birth doula scholarships
• birth doula scholarships in (state)
• black birthing mother scholarship fund
• scholarships for BIPOC parents

Additionally, initiatives like JustBirth Space from Every Mother Counts provide creative solutions to connect folks with doula care on a scholarship basis.

Hire a doula today!

All doulas agree that doula care is valuable! Hopefully this article made the idea of putting a doula on your birth care team even more accessible. Contact us today to learn more about your doula options!