Materna Prenatal Program: Keep Your OB, Upgrade the Journey

Most prenatal care in the United States follows the same schedule: a visit roughly every four weeks until the third trimester, with a handful of ultrasounds spread across nine months. For many women that cadence is fine. For many others, the weeks between appointments are where the questions pile up and the reassurance runs out. The Materna Prenatal Program was built for that gap. You keep your OB. We add six visits, from week 14 to week 36, with labs, ultrasounds, and real time with a provider. Your OB gets a report after every one.

Keep your OB. Upgrade the journey.

This is not a replacement for your obstetrician. Your OB leads your pregnancy, orders your anatomy scan, and delivers your baby. The program runs alongside that care, the way a good co-pilot works alongside the pilot. Every visit ends with a written summary sent to your OB, so nothing we see stays in a silo.

What it adds is time and data. Standard visits are short because they have to be. Ours are built around the questions you have been saving up, the labs that are worth checking more than once, and the ultrasounds that answer "is everything okay" with an image rather than a guess.

The six visits, week by week

One visit at each of six points in pregnancy. Each has a specific job.

• Week 14. Thyroid and anemia labs, including ferritin, the measure of stored iron that a routine blood count misses, plus preeclampsia screening. A cervical length ultrasound establishes a baseline. This is the visit that catches thyroid problems and iron deficiency early, when they are easiest to fix.
• Week 18. We review every lab result with you, check symptoms, and add folate, vitamin D, and a repeat blood count. A pre-anatomy ultrasound gives you a look before the formal 20-week scan with your OB or maternal-fetal medicine team.
• Week 22. A post-anatomy growth ultrasound and a repeat cervical length. If the anatomy scan raised a question, this is where we talk it through.
• Week 26. A growth ultrasound with fluid, movement, position, and blood flow checks, and an anemia recheck. We also walk through a labor and baby preparation planning guide, nutrition for the third trimester, and the symptoms to expect next.
• Week 32. Growth, fluid, movement, and position checks, a biophysical profile, and a Doppler blood flow check. We review a third-trimester complications checklist so you know exactly which symptoms warrant a call.
• Week 36. The pre-labor visit: baby's position, fluid, movement, blood flow, estimated size, and a biophysical profile, plus a final anemia check. This is where we build your birth plan and your postpartum plan together.

The 20-week anatomy scan stays with your OB or MFM. We do not duplicate it. Everything else on this list is in addition to your regular schedule, not instead of it.

Ready to start? Book your Week 14 visit at Materna in the West Village. If you are already past 14 weeks, book the same visit and we will slot you into the itinerary where you are.

Why the extra labs matter

Two findings drive most of what we catch in this program: low iron and thyroid dysfunction. Both are common in pregnancy, both cause fatigue and brain fog that get written off as "just pregnancy," and both are treatable in weeks when found early. Iron deficiency in particular compounds through the second and third trimesters as blood volume grows and the baby draws down your stores, which is why we check it three times rather than once. When supplements are not enough, we give iron infusions in the office.

The ultrasounds answer a different kind of question. Growth, fluid, cervical length, and blood flow are the things that change between standard appointments. Checking them at set points means a problem is found at week 26 rather than week 34, and that most of the time you simply hear that everything looks right.

Who the program is for

Women who want more touchpoints than the standard schedule offers. That includes first pregnancies, pregnancies after loss, pregnancies after IVF, women with a history of anemia or thyroid disease, anyone who has had a complication before, and anyone whose anxiety between appointments is loud enough to affect their sleep. It is also for women whose OB practice is excellent but busy, where a 15-minute visit does not leave room for a list of questions.

You can join at any point past 14 weeks. If you are earlier than that, our pregnancy reassurance visits and early pregnancy ultrasounds cover the first trimester, and the free first-trimester guide linked on this page will carry you to week 14.

What this means at Materna

We built this program because we kept seeing the same thing: women who were well cared for by their OB and still felt alone between visits. The program turns the in-between weeks into scheduled care. Each visit is with a Materna OB/GYN provider, in our West Village office, with the ultrasound and lab work done on site and the results explained in the room.

Your OB stays your OB. They receive a report after every visit, and we coordinate directly with their office when something needs attention. If you are weighing your options for prenatal care in NYC, or want to understand how we bridge the gap in prenatal care, those guides explain the model. For what a visit is like, see what to expect at Materna.

Materna Prenatal Program FAQs

Do I have to leave my OB to join?

No. The program is designed to run alongside your OB, who continues to lead your pregnancy and deliver your baby. Your OB receives a written report after every Materna visit.

Can I join after week 14?

Yes. You can join at any point past 14 weeks. Book the Week 14 visit type and we will start you at the visit that matches where you are.

Does the program include the 20-week anatomy scan?

No. The anatomy scan stays with your OB or maternal-fetal medicine specialist. We do a pre-anatomy ultrasound at week 18 and a post-anatomy ultrasound at week 22 around it.

What labs are included?

Thyroid function, a full anemia panel including ferritin, and preeclampsia screening at week 14, with folate, vitamin D, and a repeat blood count at week 18, and anemia rechecks at weeks 26 and 36.

Is the program covered by insurance?

Yes, we are able to work with most commercial insurance plans. If we are out of your network, we also have self-pay pricing. Details are on our insurance and pricing page.

The bottom line

Six visits, six specific jobs, one report to your OB after each. The Materna Prenatal Program adds the labs, ultrasounds, and time that the standard schedule leaves out, without changing who delivers your baby. Book your Week 14 visit at Materna in the West Village.