Too Expensive
Healthcare doesn't come cheap in America, and giving birth is no exception. Costs are a significant factor in many young people's decisions to either wait to have kids or remain childfree. But exactly how much does a birth cost?
On average, people pay around $4,000 out of pocket for a birth. Still, that number can vary wildly depending on where you live, how the delivery goes, and the insurance company. To find out how much some parents paid for childbirth, follow the list below.
Husband's Company Insurance
Thankfully, my husband's company has incredible insurance. We only had to pay a $500 deductible for my ambulance ride, C-section, and six days in the hospital. Our son was born at 27 weeks and spent 90 days in the NICU.
He qualified for Medicaid because of how early he was, so between that and our insurance, we paid nothing. I tried to add up all of the charges once and stopped after hitting $500K. We feel fortunate; I don't know what we would've done without insurance.
Huge Debt
I had my daughter when I was a junior in high school. It was an unplanned pregnancy, and I decided to keep it. She was born at 30 weeks.
For the delivery and her entire seven-week stay in NICU, I was put $432,000 in debt without even graduating high school. I'm 32 now, and I'm nowhere close to paying it off.
Research Paid Off
Because I spent a ton of time researching insurance options, I switched plans three months before giving birth, so I only had to pay $750 out of pocket.
My prior insurance would have had me pay $6,800 (10%) for a $68,000 birth. Most people aren't given any help or instruction, so people have no idea that options may exist. If you can, do your research!
Complications
I stayed only two days in the hospital and was billed $16,000. After insurance, I still had to pay $6,000. A week after giving birth, I had postpartum complications, became septic, had emergency surgery, and spent six nights in the hospital.
I cannot remember what the bill was, but it was A LOT, and after insurance, I only had to pay $500. Blew my mind that I paid way less out of pocket for a weeklong stay in the hospital compared to having a child.
Paying Extra
I had to pay $6,200, and that's just what I had to pay the birth center since they are not in the network with my insurance. I tried to get an exception, but since there is already a birth center in the network, I was told no.
This doesn't include my bills from the labs where my bloodwork was sent, the cost of the medications, the complementary care I needed to be well during my pregnancy, or my postpartum recovery costs. I'm so over this country.
Not Ready
The bill that I still haven't paid was over $120,000, and I almost did not make it through the whole ordeal.
I had to pay $120,000 to give birth to a child I wasn't even sure I was ready for or not. The cost was the whole reason I wasn't ready to have a kid. I am now a happy mother, but the debt still hangs over my head.
Complications
My kid was born with a condition that required many weeks in NICU. The bill ended up at $775,000. I work for the hospital I delivered in, and insurance covered everything.
It's ridiculous and awful that some new mothers would've been saddled with that bill as a result of something entirely out of their control.
Twins
I had pre-eclampsia with my twins, an emergency C-section at 36 weeks, and a five-day hospital stay because my blood pressure took a while to stabilize.
My twins were having issues with feeding but only went to the NICU for a couple of hours for observation. My bill was about $130K. So yeah, I should look into better insurance options.
Insurance Saved Me
Before insurance, the total cost for my bill, the separate bill for my daughter, the OB-GYN, and the anesthesiologist was nearly $40,000. After insurance, we ended up paying only $2,000.
I don't know how anyone without insurance could ever afford a child, and that saddens me greatly, as I couldn't imagine not having my children.
Leaving Early
It cost me $15,000 for induction with no complications. We even left earlier than we should have to avoid the extra charge from the hospital.
We knew it would cost us much more if we stayed there. This is the reality of the American medical system. It's so expensive you can go bankrupt from one visit to the hospital.
Unbelievable
I was induced at 37 weeks due to pre-eclampsia. I had to take medicine, then Pitocin, and three epidurals because the first two didn't work. Had a natural birth, and the baby went to the special care nursery for a few hours and no NICU.
My total stay was five days. The bill was $42K, and I paid around $4K out of pocket with all the appointments. I couldn't believe that's how much it was!!
Only Two Days
It cost me about $7K after insurance in 2019 for an emergency C-section birth plus a NICU stay. We were only in for two days. I have pretty great insurance for my area.
I barely managed to save the money over the years and just recently paid the birth bills off. I can't believe it cost me that much to give birth.
No More Children
My husband was on active military duty when our son was born. I used the military hospital, but it cost us $0. He left the Army when our son was 3.
Knowing what it would cost to have another child with our new insurance plan ($9K deductible plus 20% of surgery costs), we decided not to have additional biological children.
Bad Insurance
I had a C-section with terrible insurance. It cost $28,000. I also had to pay my doctor $3,000 before the baby was born.
The hospital made me pay before the baby was born and took $8,000. They are still waiting for that other $20,000, and I don't know when I will be able to pay it.