We accept most healthy, low-risk people as clients, including those who have had a previous cesarean section (vaginal birth after cesarean, or v-bac).

There are a few conditions that exclude you from homebirth with Birthmoon, including but not limited to:

-Pre-eclampsia or high blood pressure
-Uncontrolled gestational diabetes
-Type 1 diabetes
-Classical cesarean (if you had a previous c-section with a vertical, or up and down cut)
-Placenta previa (placenta is covering your cervix)
-Placenta accreta (placenta is growing too deeply into uterus)

If you are unsure, please reach out and we’d be happy to have a conversation with you to determine if homebirth is a good option for you.

Dawn is a Licensed Midwife (LM) & Certified Professional Midwife (CPM), credentialed by the North American Registry of Midwives (NARM). NARM sets the standard for the competency-based CPM credential. You can learn more about NARM and the CPM credential at NARM.org.

In Iowa, yes. We are licensed under the nursing board of Iowa. Dawn is dual licensed in both Iowa and Wisconsin.

For low-risk women, homebirth is safe.

Multiple studies (1,2) of hundreds of thousands of women show that for women who intend to give birth at home, there is no increased chance of the baby’s perinatal or neonatal death compared to other low risk women who intend to give birth in a hospital.

Countries such as Sweden, the Netherlands, and New Zealand, which have the best birth outcome statistics in the world, use midwives as their main maternity care providers.

We recognize that routine interventions performed in hospitals, such as induction, epidural, and active management of the third stage of labor, can lead to the very complications that women hope to protect themselves from. Those interventions are often performed without informed consent or any consent at all -- which is an abuse of the trust that women place in their care providers.

Birthing at home is a reclamation of power. Inherent in birthing at home is taking responsibility for one’s self, circumstances and choices. We are here to guide you and answer questions, so you feel supported and held, as you navigate your way through the rite of passage that is pregnancy and birth.

Birthmoon Midwifery does not process insurance. You will receive a receipt that you can submit on your own, because some insurances do cover homebirth. We encourage everyone to submit their receipt to insurance, because the more people who do it, the more likely insurance companies are to cover it.

There are also third party services you can use to help you get your prenatal care and homebirth covered by your insurance, but you would need to pursue this on your own.

Overall, our clients find that homebirth is an affordable option, especially compared to out-of-pocket hospital birth. Please call or message us to inquire about current rates and payment plans.

Yes, we can. Many women choose to have a 20 week anatomy scan, or a dating ultrasound. Labs we can do in office or we can send you to a local lab in the Cedar Rapids area. We will talk through any questions you have regarding ultrasounds and labs.

No. Washington State is the only state that allows CPMs (certified professional midwives) to prescribe medication.

Yes, we are certified in CPR and neonatal resuscitation, and carry the necessary equipment for resuscitation. We also carry Pitocin to address postpartum hemorrhage, RhoGAM for rhesus (rh) incompatibility, and vitamin K. We discuss pros and cons and gain full informed consent before using any medication.

We’ll talk ahead of time to create a plan in case a transfer becomes necessary, including your hospital of choice. Homebirth midwives are trained to know when a transfer of care is indicated, sometimes even if the mother herself isn’t sure.

Birthmoon Midwifery’s transfer rate is consistently below seven percent, and the c-section rate is consistently below five percent. So, although rare, we do make sure to have a plan in case the unexpected arises.

We only schedule two births per month so we can make sure to provide you with the individualized and responsive care you deserve.

Dawn works together with another midwife, apprentice or assistant who may be present at your prenatals, so there is always someone available to serve you, including on the rare occasion that two mothers go into labor at the same time.