For Families

Welcome! 

• Doulas are trained professionals who help you explore options, choices, and desires during pregnancy, birth, and beyond. 
• You can connect with a doula at any point during pregnancy, though the earlier, the better. 
• Doula care is unique! Doulas get to know you during your pregnancy, stay by your side throughout labor and birth and can continue to offer support after baby arrives.
• During your labor, a doula can offer hands-on comfort measures, breathing and coping strategies, and information to help you feel calm and prepared. 
• Already had your baby? Some doulas specialize in helping families transition to life with a new baby.

Looking For a Doula?

• To find a doula in your community, visit the Doula Registry!
  • Advanced search options are available to help you find a doula who is right for you. Select the country you live in and open the Advanced Search Options to enter keywords and narrow your search by language (ex: Spanish, Arabic) and service type (ex: Labor and Birth and/or Postpartum
  • You can also check the "Show only Medicaid Enrolled Doula Providers" to find a doula who works with Medicaid.
    • Being "Medicaid-enrolled" does not necessarily mean a doula is enrolled as a provider for every Medicaid Health Plan (MHP).
    • If you scroll down the page, you'll find links to the various Medicaid Health Plan (MHP) provider directories to assist you with narrowing it down to doulas in your area who also accepts your insurance.
    • You can always reach out to your MHP for additional support with finding a doula provider in your area.
    • It's common to have to reach out to several doulas to find the right fit.
• In addition to making sure you find a doula who accepts your insurance, please review the Family Flyer resource for some additional questions you can ask during an interview.     
  • Also available in Spanish, and Arabic.

Benefits of Doula Care

One-on-one doula support has been shown to: 

• Reduce stress, anxiety and pain.
• Promote self-efficacy and confidence.
• Shorten the duration of labor.
• Improve the rate of spontaneous vaginal birth.
• Reduce cesarean births.

Doula-assisted birthing people are: 

• Four times less likely to give birth to a baby with low birth weight.
• Two times less likely to experience a birth complication involving themselves or their baby.
• Significantly more likely to initiate breastfeeding.

Want more information?

• American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists Committee Opinion No. 766.
• Advancing Birth Justice: Community-Based Doula Models as a Standard of Care for Ending Racial Disparities.
• U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Issue Brief: Doula Care and Maternal Health.

Medicaid Coverage of Doula Services

The Medicaid Coverage of Doulas (MMP 22-47) in Michigan was established in January 2023. Pregnant people who have Medicaid health insurance are eligible for doula care which includes:

• From pregnancy to birth and beyond, doulas help families explore options, choices, and desires.
  • Families can receive up to 12 visits during pregnancy and up to one year after delivery.
  • During labor and birth, doulas stay by your side, offering comfort and information that can help you feel calm and prepared.

• Already had your baby?
  • Some doulas specialize in helping families transition to life with a new baby. These doulas are known as postpartum doulas - search "postpartum" on the MDHHS Doula Registry.