Privacy Policy

The short version

We ask only what a practice needs to answer you. Your answers stay in your browser until you send a request. When you do, your name, contact details and answers go to that one practice, and to no one else.

We don't sell your information, we don't use it for advertising, and our analytics never see your answers. You can ask us to delete everything at any time.

What we collect

While you look for support: the ZIP code you enter and your answers to our questions. Depending on the services you pick, that can include where you are in pregnancy (or your baby's age), your due date, where you plan to give birth, how far you'll travel, how you plan to pay and your budget, whether this is your first birth, VBAC interest (optional), the kind of care and communication you prefer, language, and optional support and values preferences. These answers stay in your browser tab. We don't save them until you send a request.

When you send a request: your name, email address and phone number. We email you a link to confirm, and nothing is sent to the practice until you click it. Confirming creates a simple account so you can see your requests and replies.

When you use the site: which pages you visit (the address without anything after the "?"), your device type and rough location (country or city), and steps like "started questions" or "sent a request". We don't record your answers this way.

Who sees your information

The practice you send a request to. It gets your name, email, phone number and your answers, so it can reply to you directly. Each request goes to one practice. Practices you didn't contact see nothing about you.

Us, to run the service: delivering your request, helping if something goes wrong, and fixing problems.

Companies that run parts of the site for us, only for that purpose: Supabase (our database and sign-in), Vercel (hosting and page-visit analytics), Resend (sending email) and Google Analytics (page-visit analytics). They don't get your answers for their own use.

We don't sell your information to anyone, and we don't share it for advertising.

Email, and no texts

We email you the confirmation link, a copy of your request, notices when a practice replies, and one note pointing you to other practices if nobody has replied after a couple of days. No newsletters or marketing unless you ask for them. We don't send text messages; your phone number is for the practice you contacted.

Cookies and browser storage

We use a few cookies: one keeps you signed in, a short-lived one carries your confirmation link, and Google Analytics sets its own to count visits. Your answers are kept in your browser tab's storage, which is cleared when you close the tab. You can block cookies in your browser; signing in won't work without them.

How long we keep it

A request you never confirm is deleted within about four days. Once you confirm, the request and your account stay so you and the practice can follow up, until you ask us to delete them. Our own copy of the confirmation step is deleted after 30 days.

Your choices

You can ask us what we have about you, ask us to correct it, or ask us to delete your account and requests. Email privacy@homebirth.com from the address you used. We reply within 5 business days and delete within 30 days. If you live in California or another state with privacy rights, these are the same rights; we won't treat you differently for using them.

If you've already sent a request, the practice has its own copy. Ask the practice directly if you want it to delete that too.

Practices listed on the site

Many listings are built from public information, like a practice's own website. They show the practice's name, services, area and website, never a private email or phone number. A practice can correct its listing or ask us to remove it by emailing jo@homebirth.com; no account needed.

We're not a healthcare provider

Homebirth.com helps you find and contact practices. We don't give medical care or advice, and we aren't a healthcare provider or health plan. We still treat your answers as sensitive: they're used only to find practices and pass your request along.

Security

Connections to the site are encrypted, your data is stored with access limited to what each part of the site needs, and practices only ever see requests sent to them. No system is perfectly secure. If you think something is wrong, email privacy@homebirth.com.

Children

Homebirth.com is for adults. We don't knowingly collect information from anyone under 18. If you think we have, email privacy@homebirth.com and we'll delete it.

Changes

If we change this policy, we'll update the date at the top. If a change affects how we use information you've already given us, we'll email you first.