[Baby Cookie]

Hi all the lovely people,

I’m seeking help in finding an Obstetrician who charges less than $2000 for our first baby.
I honestly thought that after paying for private health insurance to cover pregnancy would cover all our pregnancy costs!


We live in Noble Park north and would love to hear some helpful hints on finding an Obstetrician who charges less than $2000 out of pocket expenses.
Please PM me the names of the OB’s

Thanks you all in advance!

[c.sanders]

hi, i dont really know any but i just wanted to say that i did everything through the hospital incl.seeing the obstetrician. . i had the option of being under the care of my gp or midwives at the hospital. the hospital/midwives helped me organise everything including tests. they said an obstetrician is really only for complicated pregnancies and the hospital n medicare would cover that too if it was the case. overall i was only out of pocket for hospital parking fees.goodluck on your exciting journey

[podg]

The public hospital is fine. My first baby was born at Monash, and the rest at other public hospitals.

Don't spend everything you can afford on an obstetrician - your child and you will find lots more uses for that money.

[Madnesscraves]

No recommendations sorry, but wanted to say I was in the same boat as you. I though my pregnancy cover in PHI was covered! Nooo it's for other stuff. Annoyed me greatly. Made me wonder why I paid so much in the first place!

Good luck with your journey

[kristylee21]

I went through a public midwife program.... $300 out of pocket for some ultrasounds. Sorry I don't know of any obsetritions that are less than $2000

[House.of.blue]

I don't know any in your area but also remember you will get money back from your pregnancy management fee so if your limit is $2000 you will get some back. I paid $1600 for my fee and got almost $500 back as it boosted me over the threshold.

Just something to consider if you do choose a OB more expensive. Also some are more expensive as you pay at 20 weeks and nothing each antenatal visit whilst I payed the fee and I pay $100 every visit.

[jemso]

i am not in VIC (in sydney) but i dont like your chances of finding an OB under $2k out of pocket. current rebates from medicare are capped around $5-600. we got super lucky with this bubba and our OB did us a deal cos this is the third bub we have had through the same OB and his fees were $1800 out of pocket.

that said, even if the OB fees are under $2k there are heaps of other things you will need to pay for. your hospital excess, scans (usually more expensive as you will be referred to a private place, i was OOP $210 for my morph scan at 19 weeks) most likely your PHI wont cover antenatal classes either (we lost out $330 from that) when you have bubba if you have an epidural you can be out of pocket $500-1000 and out of pocket 1000s if you have a caesarean. you will also have a paed come and check your bubba in hospital, i think ours was a few hundred.

[Awesome101]

The $2000 will just be the management fee. If you see him/ her throughout the pregnancy you are also up for over $100 per appointment. ( mine varied from 180-240)

I crossed the threshold during my pregnancy so got a fair chunk back from Medicare.

[KRT]

I would suggest you choose your hospital and then ring all the OBs that deliver there - they should have a list. Then, ask the reception staff for how their fees work.

As PP say, some OBs have a bigger pregnancy management fee and then bulk-bill appointments, and others have a lower fee and have a per-appointmtent charge, only some of which you'll get back from Medicare.

We paid a higher management fee, but all appointments and scans in the room were bulk-billed. As we had lots of extra appointments and scans because of some complications, I feel it worked very well.

The PHI is only for the in-hospital stuff. For us, it was well worth it, since the only thing we paid for was our excess and our parking.

[kpingitquiet]

I would go public in your shoes as, yes, you might find an OB for your budget, but that won't include any anesthesia fees or other additional costs should birth not go 100% natural/drug-free. You don't want to start your new family with so much financial stress. Much better to save that 2k (and any additional costs) for things like childcare, family trips, unexpected expenses (busted water heater, dead fridge, etc), etc. Your PHI will still be "worth it" over the course of things, I'm sure, whether for dental care, specialist visits, or anything else that can come with the package of a family.