What are maternity charges?
Maternity charges refer to any expense related to the costs of medical support during pregnancy and childbirth. Many items covered by maternity charges would normally be covered by an insurance plan. Most funding limits for consumer-directed healthcare accounts would be exceeded by the costs of medical maternity charges. Medical maternity charges, though, are still eligible for reimbursement with a consumer-directed healthcare account.
Maternity charges consist of all sorts of procedures and products. The first thing a medical maternity charge could consist of would be prenatal vitamins which should be taken before pregnancy. This is followed by lab work that will screen for common birth defects. Next, medical maternity charges could occur for ultrasounds, DNA testing, and chorionic villus sampling. In the following trimester, medical maternity charges might occur for glucose screening, maternal blood screening, the amniocentesis procedure, and more ultrasounds. These ultrasounds will check on the baby's health and development of internal organs (WebMD).
All of this is followed by third trimester preparations for the baby's birth, including birthing classes that teach the mother what to expect during childbirth. There are also checkups which begin at 28, normally, with a doctor. These checkups are usually every 2 weeks until week 36 when they should occur weekly.
Labor and delivery costs are quite large. They are normally covered by insurance. Additional costs can be reimbursed with a consumer-directed healthcare account. Birth costs include attending doctor and nurse visitations, IV bags and fluids, food, epidural shots and other drugs, induction drugs, surgical supplies, hospital room space, and more (Parents.com).