2027 OB/GYN Billing Changes: How Practices Can Prepare for the New Unbundled Maternity Billing Model

With over a decade of medical billing experience, BillingFreedom has built its reputation on one thing: ensuring physicians are paid accurately, completely, and on time without placing the administrative burden on clinical teams. Our professionals include COBGC-certified specialists and experienced OB/GYN billing experts who bring a deep, practical understanding of maternity billing, coding, and the reimbursement challenges that accompany them. We do not learn maternity billing when problems arise. We know it, and we have been preparing for the 2027 transition long before most practices began paying attention.
As the January 2027 deadline approaches, BillingFreedom is already working proactively to ensure our clients are positioned for the new unbundled maternity billing model from day one. This includes staying ahead of payer policy updates, preparing updated coding workflows, training our specialists on new E/M requirements and modifier rules, and conducting practice-level audits to help ensure no revenue opportunity is missed when global maternity billing is phased out.
From diagnosis capture during labor and delivery, to E/M code selection, modifier application, and claims submission, BillingFreedom manages the entire billing workflow so your clinical team can focus on patients,  not paperwork. Our automated ICD-10 and CPT coding tools help identify every billable diagnosis and procedure, flags documentation gaps before they become denials, and ensures that every prenatal visit, delivery, ancillary service, and postpartum encounter is coded correctly and submitted completely. The result is fewer denials, stronger reimbursements, and full compliance through every stage of the transition.
On January 1, 2027, the way maternity care is billed in the United States will change more dramatically than it has in decades. The AMA CPT Editorial Panel has approved the deletion of 16 global obstetric codes, the revision of 6, and the introduction of 12 entirely new ones. If you run an OB/GYN practice or work in a labor and delivery unit, this affects every patient you see and every dollar you bill.
The shift from global to unbundled billing is the most significant change in maternity care reimbursement in a generation. Getting it right requires not just a billing service, but a partner with the credentials, the experience, and the foresight to navigate it confidently. BillingFreedom is that partner.
The opportunity is clear: when managed correctly, this change can help practices get paid for the full depth of care they have always provided. The challenge is navigating the transition without losing revenue along the way, and that is where preparation makes all the difference. 

The problem with the old model

For years, maternity care has been billed through global obstetric codes, single bundled payments that cover prenatal visits, delivery, and postpartum care all at once. It was a simple system built for a simpler era, one where prenatal care meant a handful of checkups and a delivery.
That's no longer what obstetrics looks like. Today's OB/GYN practice manages chronic conditions throughout pregnancy, conducts comprehensive screenings for depression, genetic risk, and social determinants of health, coordinates care across multiple providers and facilities, uses telehealth and remote monitoring, and supports patients through extended postpartum recovery that can stretch up to 12 weeks. None of that complexity is captured , or reimbursed  under a bundled global code.

ACOG put it plainly: "The global obstetric codes no longer reflect the standard of care occurring today."

The 2027 changes are a direct response to that gap.

What disappears on January 1, 2027

Eight foundational global codes will be permanently deleted and will no longer be billable. These include the vaginal delivery global (59400), cesarean delivery global (59510), VBAC global (59610), cesarean after VBAC global (59618), antepartum care bundles for 4–6 visits (59425) and 7+ visits (59426), delivery with postpartum (59410), and C-section with postpartum (59515).

After January 1, 2027, submitting any of these codes will result in a denial. There is no grace period.

What replaces them

The new model is unbundled, meaning each component of maternity care is billed as its own separate encounter. In practice, that means billing each prenatal visit individually using standard E/M codes (99202–99499), billing delivery services separately, billing every postpartum visit as a standalone encounter, and capturing ancillary services  screenings, counseling, complications management  as their own line items.
ACOG recommends appending the HCPCS modifier "TH" to prenatal and postpartum visits to distinguish them from routine office visits. The delivery-only codes (59409, 59514, 59612, and 59620) remain active and unchanged.
For most practices, this unbundling is a financial opportunity. Services that were previously absorbed into a flat global payment  extended postpartum care, chronic condition management, telehealth visits, hemorrhage treatment  can now be billed and reimbursed individually. The revenue potential is significantly higher, provided the documentation supports it.

Why documentation is now everything

This is where many practices will either gain or lose. Under the new model, every single prenatal visit must independently justify its E/M code. That means every encounter needs thorough, visit-specific documentation of the history and physical examination, the complexity of medical decision-making, time spent in direct patient care, every diagnosis and condition addressed, and all screening results and clinical interventions.
In a high-volume practice, this is a substantial shift. Miss a diagnosis, underdocument an encounter, or fail to capture an ancillary service, and that revenue simply disappears. Multiply that across hundreds of patients and you're looking at significant leakage  not from doing less, but from not documenting what you're already doing.

How BillingFreedom takes this off your plate

This is precisely the kind of complexity that BillingFreedom was built for. From real-time diagnosis capture during labor and delivery, to E/M code selection, modifier application, and claims submission, BillingFreedom handles the entire billing workflow so your clinical team can focus on patients  not paperwork.
BillingFreedom's automated ICD-10 and CPT capture identifies every billable diagnosis and procedure as it happens, flags documentation gaps before they become denials, and ensures that every prenatal visit, delivery, ancillary service, and postpartum encounter is coded correctly and submitted completely. As the 2027 transition approaches, BillingFreedom will be fully updated to reflect the new code set from day one  so your practice doesn't skip a beat when global codes disappear.
The shift from global to unbundled billing is the most significant change in maternity care reimbursement in a generation. Getting it right requires the right partner. BillingFreedom is that partner.
The 2027 CPT codes will be finalized in the late 2026 CPT Manual release. Contact BillingFreedom today to begin your practice audit and ensure you're ready before January 1.

The New Changes Ahead

With the 2027 changes comes  significant opportunity for practice that come with detailed and high touch maternal care. The complex care that you have been providing will now include reimbursement within the unbundled model.  This becomes significant as this very aspect was not previously being inlisted within the global billing. 
The Goal is clear for AGOG. This includes clarity, fairness within the realm of reimbursements. With the right resources and guidance provided by The BillingFreedom, your practices will reach its success under the new model.

To learn more about our outstanding OB/GYN medical billing services, you may not hesitate to get in touch with us through email at info@billingfreedom.com or phone at +1 (855) 415-3472. 

Our priority is your financial peace of mind!