You may be able to receive doula support during pregnancy, birth and postpartum at no cost to you through Health First Colorado.
Health First Colorado—Colorado’s Medicaid program—began covering doula services for eligible pregnant and postpartum members on July 1, 2024. The benefit includes support before birth, during labor and delivery, and after the baby arrives.
That means doula care is no longer something every family has to pay for entirely out of pocket.
However, having Medicaid does not automatically mean that every doula will be covered. The doula must also be enrolled as a participating Health First Colorado provider.
Here is what Colorado families should know.
Does Colorado Medicaid cover doulas?
Yes. Health First Colorado offers a doula benefit for eligible pregnant and postpartum members.
Colorado describes a doula as a trained professional who provides physical, emotional and informational support before, during and after childbirth. Doula care is nonmedical and works alongside the care you receive from your doctor, midwife and nurses.
Pregnant and postpartum Health First Colorado members are not charged copays for covered doula services.
Coverage may include:
- Prenatal doula visits
- Labor and birth support
- Postpartum doula visits
- Education and preparation
- Emotional and informational support
- Physical comfort measures during labor
- Help preparing for recovery and life with a new baby
The exact services available to you depend on your Medicaid eligibility, the current benefit rules and whether your chosen doula is enrolled with Health First Colorado.
What does a Medicaid doula do?
A Medicaid doula provides the same kind of nonmedical support that a privately hired doula may provide.
The difference is how the service is paid for.
Instead of the family paying the doula’s full fee directly, an enrolled doula submits claims to Health First Colorado for covered services.
A doula may support you by helping you understand your options, prepare questions for appointments and think through what matters most to you during birth.
They may also help you practice:
- Labor positions
- Breathing and relaxation techniques
- Comfort measures
- Partner-support techniques
- Birth-preference communication
- Postpartum planning
- Feeding preparation
- Newborn-care basics
During labor, a doula may offer continuous emotional reassurance and physical support, such as counterpressure, hip squeezes, position changes, movement, breathing support and encouragement.
After birth, postpartum doula visits may focus on recovery, feeding, newborn adjustment, emotional support and connecting the family with additional resources.
What a doula does not do
Doulas are not doctors, nurses or midwives.
A doula does not:
- Diagnose medical conditions
- Perform medical examinations
- Monitor the baby’s heartbeat
- Check cervical dilation
- Prescribe medication
- Make medical decisions for you
- Deliver the baby
- Replace your prenatal provider
Your medical care remains with your physician, midwife, nurses and other licensed healthcare professionals.
A doula supports you and your experience while your clinical team manages your medical care.
Both types of support can exist beautifully together.
What prenatal doula support may look like
Prenatal visits give you and your doula time to build a relationship before labor begins.
These visits may include conversations about:
- What you hope your birth will feel like
- Previous birth experiences
- Induction, epidural, cesarean or VBAC questions
- Comfort measures
- Your support person’s role
- Communicating with your care team
- Preparing for the hospital
- Early labor
- When to contact your doula
- Postpartum recovery
- Feeding goals
Your doula cannot tell you which medical choice to make. They can help you organize your questions, find reliable information and feel more prepared to discuss your options with your provider.
What labor and birth support may look like
During labor, your doula stays focused on helping you feel supported, informed and grounded.
Support may include:
- Breathing and relaxation reminders
- Massage and counterpressure
- Hip squeezes
- Position suggestions
- Movement and use of a birth ball
- Encouragement during contractions
- Helping create a calmer environment
- Helping your partner know how to participate
- Reminding you of questions you wanted to ask
- Supporting you through changes in the birth plan
You can have a doula whether you are planning an unmedicated birth, an epidural, an induction or a cesarean.
Doula support is not about achieving one particular kind of birth.
It is about having someone there who understands your preferences, stays connected to your experience and supports you through what unfolds.
What postpartum doula support may look like
Postpartum support begins after the baby is born.
Depending on the doula’s services and your covered benefit, postpartum visits may include:
- Emotional check-ins
- Birth-story processing
- Feeding education
- Basic newborn-care guidance
- Recovery support
- Partner support
- Help identifying community resources
- Referrals when needs fall outside the doula’s scope
- Preparing for life at home with the baby
The postpartum period can be tender, exhausting and full of questions.
Having someone check in with you—not only the baby—can make the transition feel less isolating.
Who qualifies for Medicaid doula services in Colorado?
The doula benefit is available to qualifying pregnant and postpartum members enrolled in Health First Colorado.
You generally need to meet two requirements:
- You must have active Health First Colorado coverage during the eligible period.
- The doula providing the service must be enrolled as a participating Health First Colorado doula provider.
If you are pregnant but are not currently enrolled, begin by checking whether you qualify for Health First Colorado.
Pregnancy uses different eligibility guidelines than regular adult Medicaid coverage, so do not assume that your income is too high without checking.
Does every Colorado doula accept Medicaid?
No.
A doula may be trained and certified but still not be enrolled with Health First Colorado.
To bill Medicaid for covered doula services, the doula must complete the state’s provider-enrollment requirements. Colorado identifies enrolled doulas under its designated doula provider type.
Before scheduling a consultation, ask:
“Are you currently enrolled as a Health First Colorado doula provider?”
Be specific.
You may also want to ask whether their enrollment is fully active and whether they are currently accepting new Medicaid clients around your estimated due date.
How to find a Medicaid doula in Colorado
Begin with the official Health First Colorado provider search. The state’s provider directory can be used to search for participating healthcare providers and services.
You may also find doulas through:
- Your prenatal provider
- Your hospital or birth center
- Local doula organizations
- Community pregnancy programs
- Medicaid care coordinators
- Local parenting groups
- Referrals from other families
When contacting a doula, include:
- Your estimated due date
- The city where you plan to give birth
- Your planned hospital or birth location
- That you have Health First Colorado
- Whether you are looking for birth, postpartum or both types of support
An initial message could say:
“Hi! I’m due in October and plan to give birth in the Denver area. I have Health First Colorado and am looking for birth-doula support. Are you currently enrolled with Medicaid and available around my due date?”
Questions to ask a Medicaid doula
Finding a participating provider matters, but the relationship matters too.
Your doula will be present during a vulnerable and meaningful time. You should feel comfortable asking questions and noticing whether their personality and approach feel right for you.
Consider asking:
Are you currently enrolled with Health First Colorado?
Confirm that the doula can bill your coverage directly for eligible services.
Are you available around my estimated due date?
Doulas usually limit how many birth clients they accept each month.
What services are included?
Ask how many prenatal and postpartum visits they offer, how long those visits usually last and what labor support looks like.
When do you go on call?
Ask when their on-call period begins and what happens if you go into labor before or after that window.
How do I contact you during labor?
Find out whether they prefer calls, texts or another method—and when they want you to begin updating them.
Do you have a backup doula?
Ask what happens if your doula is sick, attending another birth or unexpectedly unavailable.
Have you supported births like the one I am planning?
You might ask about experience with:
- Hospital births
- Inductions
- Epidurals
- Unmedicated births
- VBAC
- Planned cesareans
- High-risk pregnancies
- First-time parents
- Partner-supported births
A doula does not need to have lived your exact experience to support you well, but their answer can help you understand their comfort level and approach.
How do you work with partners?
A doula should not replace a supportive partner.
A good doula can help partners feel more confident, give them practical ways to participate and step in when they need food, rest or reassurance.
What is your approach to medical care?
Look for someone who respects your choices and understands that doulas are part of a larger support team.
You deserve a doula who can support you in a hospital, work respectfully with medical staff and remain focused on your needs without creating unnecessary conflict.
Do I need a referral for a Medicaid doula?
Requirements can change, and your individual coverage may affect how services are arranged.
Before beginning care, ask the doula and Health First Colorado whether you need:
- A provider referral
- Prior authorization
- Proof of pregnancy
- An active Medicaid identification number
- Specific intake paperwork
- Approval for particular services
An enrolled Medicaid doula should be able to explain their own intake and billing process.
You can also contact Health First Colorado member services using the number listed on your member card when you need help understanding your benefits.
What happens if I already hired a doula?
Do not assume that Medicaid will automatically reimburse you.
First, ask whether your doula is enrolled with Health First Colorado and whether covered claims can be submitted for your services.
If the doula is not enrolled, Health First Colorado may not be able to pay for their care.
Ask these questions before signing a private-pay contract or paying a nonrefundable retainer:
- Are you an active Health First Colorado provider?
- Will you bill Medicaid directly?
- Are any services outside the covered benefit?
- Could I owe anything personally?
- What happens if my Medicaid eligibility changes?
- What happens if a claim is denied?
Make sure payment expectations are written clearly in your agreement.
Could I receive doula care at no cost to me?
Yes, qualifying pregnant and postpartum Health First Colorado members may be able to receive covered doula services without paying a copay.
However, you still need to confirm:
- That your Medicaid coverage is active
- That you are eligible for the service
- That your doula is enrolled with Health First Colorado
- That the care being provided is covered
- Whether any requested services fall outside the Medicaid benefit
Never hesitate to ask about money before care begins.
You deserve to understand exactly what is covered and whether you could be responsible for any additional charges.
Doula support should be accessible
Support during birth should not be reserved only for families who can comfortably pay out of pocket.
Pregnancy, labor and postpartum can bring unfamiliar decisions, intense physical changes and a whole new language to learn.
A doula cannot promise a specific birth outcome.
What they can offer is preparation, continuity and a steady person who remains focused on you through the process.
You may have access to more support than you realize.
Start by checking your Health First Colorado eligibility. Then look for an enrolled doula whose personality, availability and approach feel right for your family.
You do not have to navigate this season alone.
A note from Parent Vortex
Parent Vortex provides calm, practical guidance for pregnancy, birth, postpartum and parenting—with the sweet spot between intuition and information.
I’m Melinda, a birth and postpartum doula and Certified Lactation Educator serving families throughout the Denver metro area. I believe families deserve access to informed, nonjudgmental support—regardless of how they are insured or how they plan to give birth.
Doula care is nonmedical and does not replace care from your physician, midwife, nurse or another licensed healthcare professional.
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