WNC TRANSFER OF CARE OPTIONS
Photo by Destinee Blau Photography
The following list provides all of the necessary information for those seeking a transfer of care due to the WNC Birth Center closing. The list includes care practices in Asheville and surrounding areas, their parameters surrounding transfers including weeks pregnant, insurance taken, etc.
- Practice solely at Mission Hospital
- Takes 100% of their own call, meaning they don’t share an on-call calendar with another practice.
- Accepting late transfer of care with the following guidelines:
- 36 weeks and under if it is your 2nd or more birth
- 34 weeks and under if it is your 1st birth
- Insurance: accepts all insurance across-the-board besides Medicaid is complicated and will be taken on a case by case basis. They will give priority to pre-existing patients who transferred out of their care to the Birth Center and can take them later than 36 weeks if they have received care there before.
- Hard policies that differ from the birth center:
- If your water breaks, you have 6 to 12 hours to labor at home before required to come into the hospital. If you are GBS positive they will want to augment labor at that point in time.
- Likes to induce everyone by 41 weeks however patients can say no and go to 42 but they will be strongly encouraged to go into labor by 41 weeks.
- MAHEC provides non-judgmental care for any and all families regardless of place of birth, insurance, and previous care.
- MAHEC will receive all transfers for out of hospital births and is very welcoming to all transports.
- MAHEC provides non-judgmental care for any and all families regardless of place of birth, insurance, and previous care.
- Practices solely at Mission Hospital
- Accepts all late transfer of care with no limiting criteria
- Accepts all insurance
- Has midwifery staff five days a week working 12 hour weekday shifts
- Residency program has been trained by midwives
- Practices some of the most evidence based care in town
- May or may not be able to see midwives exclusively for all prenatal care depending on the weeks gestation for transfer of care.
- Practices solely at Mission Hospital
- Two doctors -Dr. Livingston and Dr. Ulrich; occasionally share call with Dr. Rachel Hines at Lantern Health
- They have no hard policies for transfer number if weeks
- Accept all insurance
- Really respect patients autonomy
- Good for low-risk pregnancies and births
- MAHEC provides back up with pregnancy complications
- Must have records from the birth center, and they automatically become the baby’s doctor
- Practices at Mission Hospital
- Dr. Rachel Hines is the only doctor on staff who attends births, with Community Family Practice as the back up.
- Insurance: it is out-of-network and does a membership-based program. $100 a month membership includes labs and appointments there is no fee on top of that for office visits. There is a $800 delivery fee and all facilities and other fees are considered out-of-network and clients will need to file for their own reimbursement or meet their out of network deductible.
- They are insurance-blind, meaning they use the same, transparent fees to budget for care and collect these fees outside insurance. This allows visits to be longer and their approach to be deeply personal. People with no insurance, pregnancy Medicaid, and a variety of other plans have found it to be high value and a welcome change from the typical system.
- Lantern Health accepts transfers of care for low-risk pregnancies up to 36 weeks gestation
- As a family medicine group, there’s an opportunity to cultivate a lasting relationship for primary care and pediatric care if desired.
- Dr. Hines assists vaginal deliveries at Mission Hospital only (not Pardee or Advent) and in collaboration with two physicians from Community Family Practice in a call-sharing model. Clients of each practice have opportunities to meet the physicians in the other practice prior to delivery. She makes every effort to be involved in Lantern Health deliveries when her schedule (especially childcare needs) allows. She has reliable and skilled backup from MAHEC OB in the event of complications outside of her training.
Link to Rachel Hines bio: https://lanterndpc.com/team/rachel-hines/
Asheville Womens Medical Center:
- Accepting late transfer of care case by case basis
- Share call with Laurel OBGYN
- Have night time doctors on staff on the hospital
Hard Policies:
- No Water births
- Requires IV port placement
Insurance: in network with United Women’s Health system. Will accept all insurance including managed medicaid plans participating in Blue Cross, United and Well Care
- Provides care at Mission Hospital
- Will not accept transfer of care of anyone over 18 weeks
- Will accept pregnancies under 18 weeks with a referral and records
No exceptions because of their billing policies
Harris Regional Hospital: Harris Women’s Care Sylva
- Jessica Williamson, former WNCBC midwife, works there.
- You can call and schedule appointments directly with her. She is 100% open for July.
- Jessica cannot commit to 24/7 care but the midwives that she works with are fabulous and they 100% take care of all clients desiring midwifery care at Harris.
- You can talk to her personally at jessica.williamson@westcare.org.
- This would be good for families that are OK with a hospital birth and live west of Asheville in the Sylva/Franklin area
McDowell hospital:
- Angie Logan, CNM from the WNCBC transferred there.
- This is a good hospital for people in the Morganton/Old Fort area.
- There are three midwives in the practice that give care Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday. However, she would be a great resource and contact for people wanting more information at angela.logan@hcahealthcare.com
Pardee Hospital – Rivers Woodward: riverswoodward@gmail.com (828) 342-2864
Per his words: I am very passionate about access to prenatal care in our region and consider myself to be a holistic-minded MD (my little brother was a home water birth) although I am largely within the parameters of Pardee currently for deliveries. If I can be of any help providing care or connecting patients with resources in Rutherford county, please don’t hesitate to reach out by phone, email, or text.
Birth Centers
Labors of Love Birth Center – Greenville/Spartanburg SC
No transfer of care, booked through February 2022
We will be adding to this document as more information becomes available.
