MM provides global clinical midwifery care, which encompasses:

Prenatal Care: Scheduled visits every 4 weeks through 28 weeks, every 2–3 weeks through 38 weeks, and weekly from 39 weeks until delivery. Visits are conducted at our Decatur office (or via telehealth when clinically appropriate). Partners and children are welcome.

37-Week Home Visit & Logistics Review: Conducted in your home at 37 weeks to review birth supplies, logistics, informed consent and emergency transport protocols. Partner attendance is required.

On-Call Birth Window: Dedicated 24/7 on-call availability from 37 weeks to 42 weeks gestation (+/- a few days based on informed consent).

Labor, Delivery & Immediate Postpartum: Active labor attendance, continuous fetal and maternal monitoring, emergency equipment management, and immediate postpartum/newborn care (up to 4 hours post-delivery).

Newborn Assessment: Initial newborn physical exam, pulse oximetry screening, optional Vitamin K administration.

Postpartum Care: One in-home visit within 72 hours of birth, a 1-week virtual check-in, and a 6-week and 3 month postpartum visit.

Birth certificate: Electronic submission of state birth certificate registration.

To maintain eligibility for a homebirth under midwifery clinical standards, you agree to complete the following diagnostic requirements:

Laboratory Testing: Standard prenatal panel (Blood Type/Rh, CBC, Antibodies, Hep B, HIV, Rubella, RPR, Urine Culture, STI screen) required at onset of care; Gestational Diabetes screening and CBC required at 26–30 weeks (You have the option of juice or CGM as alternatives if you have no metabolic risk factors). GBS testing at 36wk is recommended, but not required.  

Anatomy Ultrasound: A comprehensive second-trimester fetal anatomy scan is mandatory for all homebirth clients to rule out structural anomalies requiring hospital delivery.

Third-Trimester & Post-Dates Surveillance: Third-trimester ultrasounds or Non-Stress Tests (NSTs) are required for clinical indications (e.g., fundal height discrepancies) and post-dates monitoring after 41 weeks.

Homebirth requires active participation and accountability. To remain eligible for homebirth care with MM, you agree to:

Full Medical Disclosure: Honestly disclose your complete medical, surgical, and psychological history. Intentionally withholding medical history that compromises clinical safety is grounds for immediate termination of care.

Nourishment & Health Maintenance: Maintain proper nutrition, hydration, and lifestyle habits required to sustain a low-risk pregnancy.

Birth Environment: Provide a clean, safe, and supportive home environment. MM reserves the right to decline homebirth services if the home environment or present individuals compromise clinical safety or provider well-being.

First-Time Parent Requirements: First-time mothers are strongly encouraged to secure an integrated care team, including a professional doula, childbirth education, pelvic floor physical therapy consultation, chiropractic care and lactation consultant prior to delivery.

Labor Arrival: The midwife arrives at your home during active labor (defined as 4-6cm dilation with strong, regular contractions). Prior to active labor, you are expected to utilize your primary support system (e.g., partner, doula) and update the midwife by phone.

Response Window & Rapid Labor: The on-call team maintains a 1hour response radius (driving time) and requests early notification of labor signs. While every effort is made to arrive promptly, MM cannot guarantee arrival times due to unpredictable travel, traffic, or rapid labor progression. In the event of a precipitous birth prior to midwife arrival, MM provides telephone direction and assumes immediate clinical care upon arrival. It is your option to call 911 for EMS response.

Birth Team & Coverage: A secondary trained birth professional (CNM, RN, Midwife Apprentice, or Birth Assistant) will attend your homebirth. Moonlight Midwifery reserves the right to arrange qualified substitute clinical coverage in the event of overlapping labors, sudden illness, or staffing emergencies.

If a Certified Nurse-Midwife (CNM) is unavailable, a Certified Professional Midwife (CPM) trusted and vetted by Crystal Bailey will be offered as an alternate midwifery provider. You maintain full autonomy to accept or decline this alternative coverage.

Labor Freedom & Positioning: You may labor and deliver in any position and choose hands-off or midwife-guided support.

Physiologic Birth Support: Practice standards include low-intervention care, undisturbed skin-to-skin contact, and physiologic delayed cord clamping (until pulsing ceases or after placental delivery).

Waterbirth & Client Supplies: You may labor and/or deliver in water. You are solely responsible for procuring waterbirth supplies.

Newborn Transition & Resuscitative Support: Undisturbed neonatal transition is supported. If assistance is required, the midwife is equipped to provide neonatal resuscitation, including suction, LMA, CPAP and supplemental oxygen.

Maternal and fetal safety dictate all clinical decisions. If deviations from normal, low-risk parameters occur during labor or birth, a transfer to a hospital setting will be initiated.

Transfer Protocol: Non-urgent transfers may occur via personal vehicle; urgent transfers will utilize Emergency Medical Services (EMS). The midwife will provide a clinical handoff to the receiving hospital staff and transmit medical records.

Hospital Support Role: While MM facilitates hospital transport and clinical handover, guaranteed continuous in-person doula or advocacy support at the hospital is subject to midwife rest requirements and availability. Clients desiring guaranteed hospital labor support are strongly advised to hire an independent doula.

If you are clinically risked out of a homebirth delivery, your midwifery care with Moonlight Midwifery does not end.  In many scenarios, clinical management often requires expanded care, increased oversight, and specialized time. Moonlight Midwifery adapts your Care Package to provide continuous clinical and holistic support, including:

Clinical Coordination: Managing specialist referrals, perinatology consultations, and interprofessional clinical care plans.

Holistic Interventions: Applying naturopathic and functional assessment during visits to help mitigate the underlying clinical condition. Offering additional bodywork or energy work sessions. 

Hospital & Advocacy Support: Providing continuous midwifery guidance, informed-consent advocacy, and birth/doula support in the hospital setting.

Postpartum & Recovery Care: Home postpartum sessions focused on restoring grounding, integration and emotional wellbeing for mother and baby.

Moonlight Midwifery respects your autonomy as the ultimate decision-maker for your body, pregnancy, and baby. Navigating medical options requires a clear understanding of provider roles, collaborative options, and personal responsibility.

Collaborative Co-Care with an OB/GYN: You have the absolute right to maintain simultaneous "co-care" with a hospital-based OB/GYN practice throughout your pregnancy. We encourage you to use hospital practices that allow you to be transparent in your homebirth plan.

Informed Refusal: Consultations with Maternal-Fetal Medicine (MFM) specialists or OB/GYNs may result in medical advice, interventions, or procedures that go beyond basic safety screening. Moonlight Midwifery honors your fundamental right to exercise Informed Consent and Informed Refusal when a reasonable midwifery care practice is an alternative. 

Absolute Scope Boundaries: Supporting your right to informed refusal does not override mandatory clinical safety limits. If declining a medical intervention causes your health or fetal well-being to cross into a high-risk category outside the legal or safe scope of independent midwifery care, homebirth services will be discontinued.

This contract may be terminated under the following conditions:

Elective: You may choose to discontinue MM care at any time.

Client Non-Compliance: Absence from scheduled visits, failure to complete required testing (ultrasounds/labs), or failure to maintain financial obligations by 37 weeks allows MM choice to discontinue care.

Relocation: Moving your residence outside a 60-mile radius of the MM office permits MM to electively cancel the homebirth contract or to charge an additional travel fee. 

Financial Terms: Fee retention, refunds, and unpaid balances following a contract cancellation are governed strictly by your signed MM Financial Agreement.