The best way to navigate these decisions is to come to an orientation. Afterward, you will receive your estimate from our Client Financial Specialist, so you have the information you need to make an informed decision. We are here to help! Read more below.

We provide an estimate of your out-of-pocket costs for maternity, birth and newborn care at Dar a Luz after you have attended an orientation. We do this for everyone, prior to your first appointment with a midwife, so that you can make an educated decision about your care. Every policy with every insurance company may have different rules. We can estimate your out-of-pocket expenses based on your insurance coverage only by checking your specific policy.

We have four things that we charge for:

• Registration fee
• Professional fee (this is one-on-one time with the midwives)
• Facility fee (this covers birthing suite use, birth supplies, RN birth assistant, overhead, classes, administrative costs)
• Newborn care for the first month

If you sign up with us, we will collect your portion from you by week 36 in your pregnancy. You can make payments or pay it all at once. We are flexible in our payment plans, so email our Client Financial Specialist (Erica), if you have a special situation.

New Mexico’s Medicaid program is called Centennial Care. Its services include physical health, behavioral health, long-term care and community benefits. Centennial Care uses four existing insurance companies to provide this coverage.

Medicaid’s mission is to provide no-cost or low-cost health insurance coverage to financially eligible citizens. Even if you didn’t qualify before getting pregnant, you may qualify for maternity coverage now. Medicaid is expanding to cover more people.

Confused about Medicaid?

Many people are! But it’s easy once you get into it. You only need to know if you qualify, and then complete an application. You can do both from this page.

Just add up the gross pay on your household’s paychecks (the amount before taxes, insurance and everything else is taken out), and come up with the total for an average month.

If it’s less than the numbers below*, you can qualify for Medicaid.
In determining the household of a pregnant woman, she is counted as herself plus the number of children she is expected to deliver this pregnancy.

Start the application process immediately if you think you may qualify for Medicaid. See below. It can take 45 days for coverage to be set up, and while you wait, your appointments may or may not be covered by Medicaid.

Find out for sure if you can get Medicaid, and apply today

You can find out for sure whether you qualify for any Medicaid program in New Mexico several ways. Choose the option that’s easiest for you:

• Still not sure if you qualify? Check your eligibility and apply for a variety of state assistance programs, including Medicaid, food stamps, cash assistance, and help with home heating at YesNM!

• Fill out a federal HealthCare.gov application online

• Complete the HSD’s Medicaid application online and find instructions for mailing the application to HSD

• Even if you don’t qualify for maternity benefits, you may be able to get your baby on Medicaid and/or get other benefits after birth. Ask your ISD/HSD caseworker about New Mexikids insurance and the WIC program (Women, Infants and Children). And contact the office manager at Dar a Luz to find out what other options we have for making your care here affordable.

Before you start an application, gather these:

• Social security numbers of the family members to enroll

• Employment and income information — paystubs, tax return, W2 forms

• Policy numbers, if you currently have health insurance (this doesn’t affect your eligibility)

• The first date of your last menstrual period

• Though they are not supposed to require it anymore, they may ask for a “proof of pregnancy” letter from your midwife or doctor

If you qualify for Medicaid, you will be asked to select a Managed Care Organization (MCO) to administer your care. We accept all three MCOs

Each MCO has the same coverage for most things: certified nurse-midwife fees related to maternity, lab work, ultrasounds, hospital admission, doctor visits, specialist visits, other medical care, behavioral health, long-term care, prescriptions, emergencies, vision, dental, certain kinds of rehabilitation, and x-rays. However, not all providers accept all MCOs. Call your favorite providers and find out if your choice will matter to them. What else makes the MCOs different? They may have different value-added services, such as free carseats, cribs, and mileage reimbursement for trips to provider offices. Visit their websites to find out what else they offer. 

If you have other health insurance, don’t be afraid to report that to Medicaid. They don’t use that information when determining your eligibility for pregnancy coverage. And if you fail to report it to them, it could mean big trouble later … insurance fraud. You could also be stuck paying your own medical bills plus fines for the extra handling of claims.

Pregnancy Medicaid is usually back-dated to the beginning of your pregnancy. So if you’ve been told that you are eligible, your prenatal care at Dar a Luz will likely be covered no matter when you start seeing us. 

Whatever you decide to do, please keep us informed. Tell us about all of your insurance policies. Tell us whenever anything changes. After your baby is born, add him or her to your Medicaid coverage within 30 days and tell us when it’s done.