Speech therapy

That is definitely qualified for speech therapy. My first was tested at 18 months with four words, and his eval came back saying he has a 9 month level. Get her evaluated asap, waitlists are long sometimes.

is it covered by insurance if not recommended by her doctor?

That’s a question for insurance. But if you want an eval and your doctor says “no” thats a concerning flag for me. Also, a lot of states have free therapy “early intervention”

I would push for an eval at this point with the state. The milestone at 18 months is trying to say 3 words beyond Mama and Dada. Those 3 words should be said with consistent meaning, even if they're not said correctly, so "ba" for bottle, for example, would be a word. I wouldn't delay. Your baby may just need some guidance from an SLP to get to where she needs to be!

Your doc should refer you to your state’s early intervention program, which is free. They will send a speech therapist and perhaps a DT to evaluate your daughter and determine if she is eligible/what services she could benefit from.

I also wouldn’t be alarmed, but your doctor’s lack of proactivity on this is a bit concerning.

I've been unhappy with her pediatrician for a while, but there aren't many options in our immediate vicinity. There are excellent doctors about 30 minutes or so away, but I've been really overwhelmed with the idea of working full time, also 30-45 minutes away, and switching doctors.

I really wouldn’t be worried if I were you. My daughter got suggested to speech therapy when she was probably 2.5 and there were kids under two in there who did NOT need to be in there! Don’t push your kid to much, they may be busy learning something else and they’ll wake up randomly one day saying 5 new works you never heard them say before. My daughter is now 4 and still in speech. Some kids just have a harder time than others and that’s ok, they’ll learn at their own pace.