Pregnancy FAQs

A doctor discussing birth options with a pregnant woman and her partner. All three people are wearing masks.

Pregnancy and childbirth raise a lot of questions, especially for new parents! Your body and your life are changing to accommodate a new little person, and that can be stressful when you don’t have all of the answers. We’ve collected years of questions from real parents and caregivers like you to create our FAQ page.

Keep in mind that The Mother Baby Center does not provide prenatal care. The Mother Baby Center is where you will deliver the baby. If you have questions about your pregnancy and health care during this time, please talk directly with your doctor, midwife or other provider.

If you’re looking for location-specific information (parking, amenities, visiting hours), please visit our locations page.

To find a provider who delivers at The Mother Baby Center location of your choice, please visit the Find a Provider tool. All our providers are listed, including midwives. If you are interested in more than one location, be sure to check that the provider can deliver at either location.

When you choose a provider, you are usually selecting the group practice rather than a single physician or midwife for your prenatal care. We recommend asking how the clinic/practice will provide support to you during pregnancy and labor to see if it’s a good fit.

When choosing a provider, you should confirm the specific provider also has delivery privileges at the center you are interested in. If you are interested in more than one location, be sure to check that your provider can deliver at either location.

Please talk with your care provider to discuss related insurance issues. There are a variety of payment options available. 

Allina Health manages the labor and delivery part of The Mother Baby Center, therefore the delivering caregiver would be a patient of Abbott Northwestern Hospital, or United Hospital, or Mercy Hospital, which are Allina Health hospitals. You can find the major health plans and products that Allina Health accepts online by clicking here. Please note that plans and products listed online are subject to change and may not be reflected until the next update. We strongly recommend confirming any health insurance coverage information directly with your health plan/insurer for complete accuracy. See other billing and paperwork related questions.

Unfortunately, The Mother Baby Center does not offer prenatal care; but it is where you will deliver the baby. However, pregnancy and prenatal care are offered in our Allina Health clinics by either an obstetrician/gynecologist (OB/GYN), a family medicine doctor or a certified nurse-midwife. To find an Allina Health obstetrics provider who delivers at The Mother Baby Center, please visit our Deliver Here page.

If your provider or one of their partners are unable to deliver the baby at The Mother Baby Center, then the on-call obstetrician from The Mother Baby Center will deliver your baby. We recommend that you check with your doctor to ensure that your medical records have been forwarded to us so that our staff has the necessary information for baby’s delivery.

If you are interested in transferring to a provider who delivers at The Mother Baby Center, please see our Find a Provider information. Once a provider/clinic is chosen, they will be able to help guide you in getting your medical records transferred to us.

Since transferring processes vary from clinic to clinic, please speak with your current facility and follow the recommended registration process. Request that your medical records be transferred ahead of your due date.

Minnesota Perinatal Physicians, part of Allina Health, offers expert and personalized high-risk obstetrical care in the upper Midwest. Patients must be referred by their primary care provider. To make a referral or schedule an appointment at any clinic location, call our centralized scheduling department at 612-863-4502. You can learn more about caring for high-risk pregnancies at our Minnesota Perinatal Physicians web page.

If you go into labor in the Twin Cities metro and decide to deliver at one of The Mother Baby Centers we would be proud to provide you with care. Keep in mind, you should check with your insurance provider to ensure we are within network, however we will never turn away any laboring patient, no matter the individual’s insurance coverage.

Please visit our FAQ page to learn about breastfeeding, including hand-expressing milk and using a breast pump. Breast pump and breastfeeding supplies are available through Allina Health Home Oxygen & Medical Equipment, however, there are many brands available online and in stores that are great for various uses. For brands and other questions, please call:

Check for mail that may be arriving from Allina Health or Children’s Minnesota (if applicable). Please call Allina Health billing services at 612-262-9000 or 1-800-859-5077. You can also email us at [email protected]. To contact Children’s Minnesota’s billing office, call 952-992-5650.

We sincerely apologize if there is an error on your child’s birth certificate. To discuss your situation, please directly contact one of our locations where you delivered the baby.

We sincerely apologize if there’s an issue with your child’s Social Security card. Unfortunately, due to privacy issues, the hospital cannot resubmit it to the Social Security (SSN) office. If you did not receive a card, you may need to bring your child’s birth certificate to the SSN office and obtain a card. If there’s an error on the card, please contact the SSN office.

If you need any medical records for the SSN card, please contact Allina Health Medical Records (HIM) department directly at 612-262-2300 to request a copy of your records, or with any other release of information questions. Online information can be found here.

We appreciate your generous offer; however, we already provide hats for all babies born at The Mother Baby Center.

Yes. But first you need to be approved to donate through Minnesota Milk Bank for Babies. To become an approved donor:

  1. Contact Minnesota Milk Bank for Babies at [email protected] or 763-236-7430.
  2. Once you’re approved to donate, the affiliated milk bank will send you a kit explaining how to get the required blood testing done – all paid for by the milk bank.
  3. Start pumping and freezing your milk donation.
  4. After you drop your milk off at one of our depots (at our three locations), it will be safely and securely stored in our freezer. We will take care of shipping your milk for you.