Costs of Private Obstetrician?

[Patti]

Hi,
I'm in melbourne and due in 8 weeks. I have paid around $200 each for 12 & 20 week scans. $210 for initial OB appt and $45 for each subsequent appointment (every 4 weeks first 30 weeks and then fortnightly from 30 weeks), $3900 OB management fee (about $400 back from m'care). The management fee is supposed to be paid at 20 weeks, but I asked to pay it late to make the most of reaching the annual m'care threshold which I think is around $1250... It runs from Jan to Dec, so I paid early Jan so that we get a higher rebate from m'care all year.. I think it's 85%? We are using our PHI for the private hospital and pay $200 refundable deposit to the hospital and $500 excess to PHI. I am having a c/section so have another approx $1000 out of pocket costs for anaethetist, pediatrician and OB assistant. There was a small rebate from Medicare for the scans but get around $40 back from each OB appt...
Hope that helps

[nickle730]

You would need to find an ob who has delivery rights at the public hospital you would want to use, but they work on a roster and so if you required the care of an obstetrician at delivery, you would be attended by whomever was rostered on. I don't think that an ob would agree to deliver you privately in a public hospital, and I'm not sure you would find a public hospital which would agree for you to be delivered privately! Your only option, I think, would be to delivery privately in a private hospital as a self funded patient, but the cost would be prohibitive for most people.

It's worth ringing a couple of ob's to ask the question, I'm interested in what the answer is!

ETA: there is a cap on what medicare will rebate for obstetrician's fees, it's somewhere around $400 for delivery and a little bit extra for management - you could ask at your local medicare office. In 2010, I paid a total of $6500 for my ob and medicare refunded around $600. I paid about $200 per US and think I got back around $50... can't remember the exact figures, but it cost a lot and I have PHI which covered the hospital fees.

[meow]

Is there a reason why you're asking for this type of care? If you want continuity of care throughout your pregnancy there are public hospitals that have a system where you will have one OB or MW throughout your care. It would also probably be cheaper to hire a MW and have a home birth given you don't have PHI and that offers great continuity of care. Otherwise a doula can be another option. Just throwing out ideas as I'm not sure what type of care you're actually looking for

[ButterflyForever]

Thanks ladies, I went public last time, but due to trying to keep the pregnancy quiet for the first few months and knowing staff who work in antenatal at the hospital. I wondered if I could see one of the Obs in his private rooms, rather than the hospital.

[HotI]

A private midwife could also do your prenatal care, many are now medicare eligible, and then attend your birth with you. Some hospitals allow private midwives to act as midwives, but others only allow them as support people. It would give you the continuity of care, and appointments with the midwife would be held at your house or at their room (not at a hospital).

good luck in finding someone right for you.