Home Births Became More Popular During the Pandemic. But Many Insurers Still Don’t Cover Them

Tia DeShazor began to question whether she wanted to give birth in a hospital when she was about six months pregnant. It was winter 2021 and COVID-19 was still raging through New York City, where she lives. Pandemic restrictions prevented her husband from attending doctors’ appointments with her, and she wasn’t even allowed to video chat with him during her ultrasound. She felt ignored by her doctors, who assured her that her round ligament pain was normal, even though it was so severe that she had difficulty walking.