No Insurance

I work for Methodist Health System, which is just south of Downtown Dallas. We have a clinic called, The Golden Cross Clinic. It is a brand new facility and very clean and nice with the latest equipment. They offer care for people who have no insurance. I think visits are $15, and payment is on some kind of sliding scale. If you go to www.methodisthealthsystem.org, click on Locations, there is a link for the clinic and all the info. Like I said, it is nice and does not feel like Parkland or anything like that at all. That is what I would do if I were in your situation. Remember to get your prenatal check-ups. It is important for your baby. There's lots of assistance out there for pregnant women. Lots of resources I think most people who typically use insurance are not aware of. It's the best condition to be in w/out insurance, because the gov. has lots of provisions. You just need to get connected. The Golden Cross Clinic will have social workers etc... that you can talk to as well.

L.,

I have a friend who is in the same situation as you. Can you please message or e-mail me (____@____.com) some of the responses that you received? I would grately appreciate it.

Thanks,
S.

I would just get on the internet and look around. Not too many physicians will let a pregnant woman go without prenatal care. I pulled this article for you from ivillage.com. It is an online resource for women. Good luck to you. I know there are resources out there, just look.
http://parenting.ivillage.com/pregnancy/phealthcare/0,,mi...

YES, I HAVE BEEN IN THAT SITUATION WHEN I WAS NINETEEN YEARS OLDS.
I WAS FROM OUT OF STATE, UNMARRIED AND LIVING WITH A RELATIVE WHEN I BECAME PREGNANT. PARKLAND HOSPITAL WAS WHERE I HAD MY BABY. YOU MIGHT CHECK WITH THEIR SERVICES. ALSO I THINK METHODIST HOSPITALS HAVE A PROGRAM ALSO. IF I FIND ADDIDIONAL INFO, I WILL PASS IT ON TO YOU.
A WORD OF ENCOURAGEMENT IS, THIS TOO SHALL PASS. I KNOW YOU CAN'T SEE IT NOW, BUT EVERYTHING IS GOING TO BE OKAY. MY BEAUTIFUL DAUGHTER IS NOW 33 YEARS OLD AND SHE IS THE APPLE OF MY EYES.
GOOD LUCK, AND MAY GOD BLESS YOU.
FRAN

L.,
My children are 12 & 10, but I seem to remember hearing about obgyn's offering payment programs for these types of situations. It costs $_____ and you pay it off monthly, so that it's paid by the time the baby is born. I think hospitals will work with you too.

Best of luck to you. It will work out.

S.

I became pregnant with our third child while my husband was between jobs. I'm a stay at home mom. I was very worried about health care. I urged him to get a job quickly which he did but it only paid $9.00/hour and the health insurance didn't kick in for 3 months! We ended up applying for Medicaid and it covered everything. If you qualify, it will cover your doctor or midwife fees, hospital fees, and postpartum check up. It will also cover your baby for a year. You can apply at the Texas Dept of Human Services.

http://www.hhsc.state.tx.us/chip/

Texcare and Chip might help in some ways

L.,

I was in the same boat a few years ago. Luckily, my obstetrician had discounts and payment plans for self-pay patients. I believe I made four payments of $700, spread out among different stages of my pregnancy. This included my pre-natal care, one sonogram and the delivery. The hospital was billed seperately and I just made payments whenever I could until they were paid off - It really was not that bad. I have actually heard that doing it this way is less expensive than maternity insurance coverage over the course of a year, if it is not paid through your employer. If you have further questions, please do not hesitate to ask. Good luck to you!

I had a friend a few years ago whose husband didnt make much and she did not work, therefore they qualified for Medicaid. We were pregnant at the same time and even though i had insurance, my stuff was more expensive than hers. Apparently Medicaid covers alot I think.

L.,
I am not sure of your total situation but if you are inbetween jobs and not working it would be worth looking into getting state aid. THe guidelines are different for pregnant women because they want people to get prenatal care. So it depends on if you have a significant other and what their income is also. They also expedite pregnancy cases.

I believe there is a TX state program that gives moms and children insurance or prescription access. Try calling the state or looking it up online.

-H. G
Richardson

When I was pregnant with my son, I did not have maternity insurance. I delivered at Presbyterian of Dallas and found out they have a program called cash policy. Basically, we had to pay the bill before we left the hospital and they cut the bill over half. I got the run around when I tried to negotiate several months before delivery. Finally I spoke with someone who let us sign a contract so that our price would not change. I would be happy to talk to you if you have any questions. Also, you might be able to negotiate a price with your OBgyn as well. Take care and best of wishes.

L....what happened? I might be in a similar situation soon and I was just curious as to what you did.

Thanks!
N.

Check out www.maternitycard-facts.com.

They work with the doctors and get you a reduced rate on all maternity... stuff.

I have not done it myself, yet but I have been researching it, because I don't have maternity insurance either. The maternity card is the only thing I've found as an alternative. Good Luck!!

Yes, there are MANY expectant mommies in the same boat, and the answer to that is actually easy.
I am (was) in exactly the same boat as you are.
I am now four months along.
I used to do bookkeeping/taxes, customer service, you name it -for my husbands business. Well the stress of working with my husband for the last four years took way too much a toll on pregnant me, and on our marriage, so in a hormonal tiff, I up and left.
Heh, not that you needed to know all that, but being pregnant, jobless and insuranceless, was looking pretty bleak. (hubby and I doing much better)
I had the choice of paying out about $4-$6000 over the course of the next nine months in order to be paid in full by the time the baby was due, or go to my local human resources office here in Irving where I live, and apply for Medicaid.
It was not near as bad of a nightmare as you might think.
Depending on your situation, like is the father present?, does he make- not enough, barely enough, decent, or good money?
There is all kinds of help available to you.
Me? I’m not that bad off. I just applied for Medicaid for my pregnancy. They are going to cover the doctor visits, lab work, perscrips, and delivery. AND my baby will be covered for a year, in case any of the many things that can go wrong, go wrong, like bad reflux, tubes in the ears, jaundice, funky bellybutton infections….or (God forbid) things that are not so minor, big problems.

Now, I’m 35 yrs old, and I have pretty much held steady jobs since I was able to work at 15 yrs old. I have paid my taxes, paid my dues, given to charity, paid off my student loans, you name it.(But I'm no angel either)
but my point is, I don’t have any hang-ups about getting some help back from the state in my time of need. Some people do, and if you’re one of them, DON’T even go there or be hard on yourself (or, with respect-too proud). I just had to put that into this already too long reply.

I’m sure you will get lots of replies and more specific help, but if you don’t, you just let me know. I’ll get out my file and we’ll figure out who to call, what to file for, what info you need to have about yourself when you go in….whatever.
____@____.com
Anytime.

D. in Irving

If you are a Dallas county resident you can get free prenatal care through Parkland hospital's prenatal clinics. Good luck with your pregnancy!