If you consider an out-of-hospital birth, ask pointed questions.

Listen to your intuition. If a provider can't answer direct questions, reconsider your preference.

Examples of questions to ask when you interview them:

• Do you adhere to Colorado laws, statutes, and regulations pertaining to direct-entry midwifery care?

• Do you perform the state-mandated oral gestational diabetes screening, including the 50-gram glucose loading dose?

• At every appointment, will you explicitly assess for edema, headaches, and visual disturbances?

• What do you do in the event of bleeding or spotting after 20 weeks?

• Can you guarantee that my records will accurately reflect the signs and symptoms of a high risk pregnancy, as they appear? Will you candidly discuss risks associated with those signs and symptoms as they occur?

• How frequently does care end with transfer to a medical facility?

• Have you, your facility, or any of your providers ever been subject to an investigation, regardless of findings, by the Colorado Department of Regulatory Agencies, the North American Registry of Midwives, the Colorado Secretary of State, or any other regulatory agency or body?