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CostHelper.com > Babies & Children > Baby Delivery
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Baby Delivery Cost |
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How Much Does Baby Delivery Cost? |
 | With Insurance: From Under $500 to $3,000 or more |
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 | Vaginal Without Insurance: $9,000-$17,000 |
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 | C-Section Without Insurance: $14,000-$25,000 |
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| The total cost of baby delivery typically consists of: the services of the obstetrician/gynecologist and pediatrician; services of the anesthesiologist and epidural, if used; the cost of your stay in the hospital room and board; a nursery fee; laboratory fees; and any medications or medical supplies. If you are insured, your insurance provider probably will receive the itemized bill, but you might receive separate non-itemized statements from the hospital and the different doctors. | | |
| Typical costs: | - The biggest factors affecting the cost of a birth are: whether it is vaginal or Cesarean; whether there are complications; and the length of the hospital stay. Geographical location also plays a part; baby delivery is most expensive in the Northeast and on the West coast and least expensive in the south. For patients not covered by health insurance, the typical cost of a vaginal delivery without complications ranges from about $9,000 to $17,000 or more, depending on geographic location and whether there is a discount for uninsured patients. The typical cost for a C-section without complications or a vaginal delivery with complications ranges from about $14,000 to $25,000 or more.
- For patients with insurance, out-of-pocket costs usually range from under $500 to $3,000 or more, depending on the plan. Out-of-pocket expenses typically include copays -- usually $15 to $30 for a doctor visit and about $200 to $500 for inpatient services for delivery. Some insurance plans only cover a percentage -- usually about 80 to 90 percent after a deductible is met, so you can easily end up reaching your yearly out-of-pocket maximum. In most plans, that ranges from about $1,500 to $3,000. According to a study by the March of Dimes Foundation, the average out-of-pocket cost for a vaginal delivery for privately insured patients was $463 and for a C-section, $523. In this forum at TheNestBaby.com, new mothers compare notes on the cost of delivery, insurance and out-of-pocket costs.
- Usually, the baby receives a separate bill, which typically ranges from $1,500 to $4,000 for a healthy baby delivered at term. For a premature baby with complications who has to spend weeks in a neonatal intensive care unit, this bill can reach tens of thousands of dollars.
- Baby delivery usually is covered by health insurance. Even if you join a group health insurance plan after you already are pregnant, delivery still will be covered; according to the U.S. Department of Labor, the federal government prohibits group health insurance plans from treating pregnancy as a pre-existing condition, or, if they offer maternity coverage, from refusing to cover prenatal care or childbirth. However, individual health insurance plans can legally treat pregnancy as a pre-existing condition, so baby delivery probably will not be covered if you join one while pregnant. If you are insured, it is very important to check with the insurance company about their requirements; some companies require you to "pre-authorize" coverage for your baby, and some require that you call them when you arrive at the hospital to deliver -- if you forget, they might refuse to cover the delivery or your newborn's care.
What should be included: | - After delivery, the baby will be examined by your doctor or a pediatrician. The U.S. Department of Health & Human Services gives an overview of the immediate medical attention a baby needs right after birth.
- You probably will stay in the hospital one to two days, if you delivered vaginally, or three to four days, if you had a Cesarean delivery.
Additional costs: | - Induction of labor, usually with drugs, costs extra. FamilyDoctor.org offers an overview of labor induction.
- A private room can cost several hundred dollars extra per day out-of-pocket.
Discounts: | - Usually, the services of a midwife are about one-third less expensive than those of an obstetrician/gynecologist.
- Some doctors or midwives will negotiate a discounted package rate for prenatal care, or prenatal care combined with delivery, for a patient paying out-of-pocket. And some hospitals will give you a discount on their part of the fee -- as much as 25 percent -- if you pay your bill at one time rather than in payments.
- The U.S. Department of Health & Human Servicesoffers information on free and reduced cost prenatal and delivery services for women who qualify. They also offer a financial aid worksheet with tips and resources on paying for care.
Shopping for baby delivery: | - The doctor you choose be board-certified by the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. Or, if you wish to use a midwife, the American College of Nurse-Midwives offers a certified midwife locator.
- If you have chosen a doctor or midwife, you usually will deliver at the hospital where they have admitting privileges; so, check out the hospital well in advance of the birth. BabyCenter.com offers a guide to choosing a hospital.
- As an alternative to hospitals, some patients choose a birth center; these usually have a more home-like environment than a hospital, allow multiple visitors, offer amenities such as Jacuzzis and offer transfer to a nearby hospital in case of complications. BabyCenter.com has information on birth centers. And the American Association of Birth Centers has a locator by state.
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Material on this page is for informational purposes only and should not be construed as medical advice. For medical decisions, always consult your physician for the right course for your infant or child.
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Article updated September 2008 |
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What People Are Paying - Recent Comments |
Page 2 of 2 - << Previous 1 2
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| Delivery Costs |
| Amount: $6,200.00 not covered by insurance |
| Posted by: a user in Fletcher, NC. | Posted: May 15th, 2010 08:05AM |
| Hospital: Park Ridge Hospital | Your Insurer: BCBS of NC |
| I was induced and had a vaginal delivery with an epidural. I ended up having to stay in the hospital 5 days because of breastfeeding issues, so my hospital bill is a little more than should normally be expected. I also had a $5000 deductible which meant more out of my pocket. The epidural ended up being $675 insruance allowable. My OB/GYN prenatal care and delivery was about $2100 insurance allowable. The hospital stay was $2600 insurance allowable for me and then an extra $750 for my daughter. That all had to come out of my pocket since I had a high deductible, but if your deductible is smaller then you would just owe whatever percentage your co-ins is. It is well worth it though!! |
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| Rupture early / baby NICU |
| Amount: $105,000.00 not covered by insurance |
| Posted by: a user in gilbert, AZ. | Posted: May 16th, 2010 09:05PM |
| Hospital: | Your Insurer: BCBS OF AZ |
| Type of Plan: PPO |
| Still trying to get them to cover to cover it but may have to declare bankruptcy. they covered the NICU stay of $60,000 |
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| Uncomplicated Vaginal w/ epidural |
| Amount: $2,050.00 not covered by insurance |
| Posted by: WTH? in Tampa, FL. | Posted: May 26th, 2010 11:05AM |
| Hospital: Tampa General | Your Insurer: United Health Care |
| Type of Plan: POS |
| The hospital billed my insurance $16,000+ for a totally normal vaginal delivery. My deductible was 2,000. The dr's bill was $2000 and it cost me $50 more for a private room. My son also had a deductible of $2000. He was charged $156 to be discharged. These costs seem pretty outrageous for a vaginal delivery! |
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| Induced, vaginal delivery |
| Amount: $1,565.56 not covered by insurance |
| Posted by: Henri's mom in Minneapolis, MN. | Posted: June 2nd, 2010 11:06AM |
| Hospital: Abbott Northwestern | Your Insurer: BCBS |
| Type of Plan: Group |
Delivery - (my cost $1565.56)
Hospital stay: 22,557.75
Doctor fee: 2,612.00
Epidural: 1,562.42
Pregnancy -
All dr visits and ultrasounds: 13,603.55
I have not received the bill for my baby's in hospital care yet, but she does not have insurance through the same provider (my fault, I missed the 30 day enrollment deadline) and so $0 of it will be covered. I'll have to pay for it all.
My plan has a $250 deductible, a hospital stay deductible of $200, 80/20 after the deductibles are met, and an out-of-pocket maximum of $1,600, all annually. Nothing I was billed for was not allowable through my insurance company so after I reached the max everything was covered. |
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| Uncomplicated Vaginal w/ epidural |
| Amount: $1,201.90 not covered by insurance |
| Posted by: Confused in Minneapolis, MN. | Posted: June 5th, 2010 09:06AM |
| Hospital: Fairview Riverside | Your Insurer: Preferred One |
Uncovered epidural charges: 95
Uncovered midwives: 326.09
Room/board/everything else: $780
Total costs: 18,347.92
I'm looking at the detailed medical bill and trying to figure out what the additional items are. Vaginal Birthing RO: 2484. Non-Stress Test ADD: 220. Non-Stress Test: 466. Level 2 W/Proc: 122 (two times). It would be helpful to know what these really were |
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| Born in Seoul South Korea |
| Amount: $1,800.00 not covered by insurance |
| Posted by: whosyourdaddy in Seoul South Korea, Other. | Posted: July 18th, 2010 09:07PM |
| Hospital: Seoul Asan Hospital | Your Insurer: Korean National Health Care |
| Type of Plan: Korean Ministry of Health |
The cost of delivery was more expensive than usual due to the fact that it was done in the university hospital. Our baby had a cleft lip and normal OBGYN's in our small town wouldn't deliver. Most deliveries here are performed in private OBG clinics above the doctor's office. Hospitals only take referred troubled cases. The average cost for delivery is about $1200 and the normal out of pocket is $300. The total cost for delivery in the countries premiere hospital (ranked 80th in the world) was $2,500 and an out of pocket of $1,300. This included induction, delivery, some Xrays and lab tests, EKG, epesiotomy, room and board, and medication.
The child had a separate bill of $500. This included an echocardiogram and a special needs feeder, plus hearing and health tests. No circumcision though.
On another note, the child requires plastic surgery for cleft lip and an indentation on the gum line. This surgery is covered by Korean National Health insurance and the total cost is unknown to me, but I called the Korean Ministry of Health and they told me my out of pocket would be about $1,100. They told me my wife's delivery would only cost $800 and the final cost was $1,300, so I will plan on at least $2000 to be safe as they won't discharge a patient here unless the bill is paid in full!!! That's kind of crazy, since if you couldn't afford the bill at the moment of delivery, how are you going to afford it 2 days later after additional charges. It's just Korean logic. Doesn't always work well. But, the total cost was actually quite good and the level of care was modern and high tech in quality. While I still had complaints, I shouldn't complain too much looking at the other bills here. |
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| Emergency C-Section with 12hrs in NICU |
| Amount: $500.00 not covered by insurance |
| Posted by: texasmommy in Houston, TX. | Posted: August 13th, 2010 02:08PM |
| Hospital: Texas Women's | Your Insurer: HMO BLUE |
| Type of Plan: HMO |
I had an emergency c/s and we only paid a $20 copay for my very first OB visit.
All u/s and tests were covered 100%.
Our deductible was $500.00 for the c/s and we never received a NICU bill.
All of our babies well child exams are included in this until she is 2 years old, including vaccinations. |
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| Baby came early deliv. at home |
| Amount: $379.00 not covered by insurance |
| Posted by: Carri in Arlington, TX. | Posted: August 13th, 2010 03:08PM |
| Hospital: Baylor All Saints | Your Insurer: bcbs |
| Type of Plan: ppo |
| My baby came unexpectantly at home. We went to the hospital afterwards (by ambulance-$1200 for me + $1400 baby). The MW literally just looked at me and said everything is ok down there then I was transferred to postpartum. I was there for 1 day. I have a $250 deductible and 10% thereafter. I had my first baby in Atl (piedmont hospital) with epidural, induction w/ pitocin, 3 day stay for me, 5 day stay for daughter with jaundice receiving phototherapy. The total cost under same insurance plan out of pocket was only $500 and then $67 for epidural. Baylor All Saints was SO MUCH MORE EXPENSIVE. I was appalled at the price difference and wonder if this is all of DFW or just Baylor All Saints. |
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| Vaginal Birth After Cesarean + Epidural |
| Amount: $1,698.00 not covered by insurance |
| Posted by: Mom4HealthyKids in Long Beach, CA. | Posted: August 16th, 2010 04:08PM |
| Hospital: Long Beach Memorial Medical Center | Your Insurer: Health Net |
| Type of Plan: HMO Silver Network aka Bottom of Barrel |
| The epidural cost me an extra $200 out of pocket. Insurance covered $1,792.00 of that bill. The total charges for the hospital stay were $16,500.00 and I didn't stay as long as my first pregnancy which was way cheaper (about $5k)! The view wasn't nearly as good either and the hospital was under construction. I can't believe how much more expensive this was! CRAZY! I had a C-Section at Hoag Memorial Presbyterian Hospital and the total charges were $12,500.00. That was only 2 years ago and we had to pay $250 out of pocket. My husband had a different job with better insurance at the time. It was Cigna. |
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| Free Exams, Ultrasounds, Delivery! |
| Amount: $0.00 not covered by insurance |
| Posted by: Lucky Momma in Hinsdale, IL. | Posted: September 5th, 2010 02:09PM |
| Hospital: Adventist Hinsdale Hospital | Your Insurer: Public Aid |
| Type of Plan: Public Aid |
| If you're not making enough, consider applying for Moms & Babies with the Illinois Dept of Human Services. I never received a bill at home, never had to pay any copays, did not pay for any Dr's office visits, hospital stay, or baby's visits/immunizations. Awesome! I'm appalled at how much hospitals are charging!!! |
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| Emergency C-Section |
| Amount: $270.00 not covered by insurance |
| Posted by: Spunky in York, PA. | Posted: October 26th, 2010 09:10PM |
| Hospital: York Hospital | Your Insurer: Highmark Blue Shield/Gateway |
| Type of Plan: PPO / Medicaid |
| Total bill for my delivery and prenatal appointments and ultrasounds was $16,762.70. Highmark paid $14,700 and Gateway picked up $1800. I had to pay $270 out of my pocket at the beginning of my pregnancy (before I picked up Gateway Insurance). |
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| Emergengy C-Section |
| Amount: $0.00 not covered by insurance |
| Posted by: Lexington Park, MD in Lexington Park, MD. | Posted: November 9th, 2010 11:11AM |
| Hospital: St. Mary's | Your Insurer: Carefirst Blue Cross |
| Type of Plan: HMO |
| My wife has the BEST insurance from being a school teacher. We didn't pay a cent to have our first child. I'm scared about the next one though since she will be off her plan and on mine which is worse. I am trying to decide whether to stay in my HDHP HSA plan or go back to an HMO. |
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| normal delivery with epidural |
| Amount: $7,200.00 not covered by insurance |
| Posted by: Amandaj001 in Juneau, AK. | Posted: November 15th, 2010 05:11PM |
| Hospital: Bartlett Regional | Your Insurer: Bcbs ak |
| Type of Plan: PPO |
| I paid 300 a month for my insurance and they only paid out what I paid into the plan. 500 deductible. Not happy about this! |
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| insurance coverage |
| Amount: $0.00 not covered by insurance |
| Posted by: Susan D. in St. Louis, MO. | Posted: December 10th, 2010 10:12AM |
| Hospital: Washington University | Your Insurer: United health-golden rule |
| Type of Plan: health-maternity |
| I am 5 week pregnant and just found out my Golden Rule _united health will pay only 4000 dollars for my delivery, but not any treatment during pregnancy...never get this insurance, I dissappointed. I paid quarterly payment of around 800 dollars for one year 500 dollars whole 3 months and never got benefit of the plan. |
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| Cesarean + Epidural |
| Amount: $3,000.00 not covered by insurance |
| Posted by: james330i in Knoxville, TN. | Posted: December 10th, 2010 12:12PM |
| Hospital: Mercy | Your Insurer: United |
On a $500 deductible + 80/20 plan. Pregnancy will cost me about $3k out of pocket.
I think it is absoultely outrageous...a childbirth should not cost that much even after insurance. I don't have $3k to spend and only have about $30 a month that I can afford to pay.
Honestly, with the amounts that these guys charge, they should be happy getting 80% of a super overinflated bill in the first place. |
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| Insurance |
| Amount: $0.00 not covered by insurance |
| Posted by: someone in florence, SC. | Posted: January 13th, 2011 10:01AM |
| Hospital: McLeod Regional Florence SC | Your Insurer: |
| People like to blame insurance companies, and I can see that after all they do try to not pay and expect us to pay them and to pay the providers who insurance is supposed to pay, but these hospitals charge such astronomical rates for these things that it's absolutely unfeasible to say that health care reform starts and stops with insurance. 30,000 for delivering a child makes me want to just stay home with a midwife and deliver. Then charging the infant son with the nursery stay, or charging children with 10's of thousands of dollars in medical bills is wrong. Not everything in this country needs to be capitalistic. |
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| Typical 80/20 |
| Amount: $4,000.00 not covered by insurance |
| Posted by: Allyson in Fort Wayne, IN. | Posted: January 21st, 2011 09:01AM |
| Hospital: | Your Insurer: Blue Cross |
| Type of Plan: PPO |
We have health insurance through my husband's job and we pay approximately $320.00 a month for it.
Insurance pays 80% AFTER deductable is met, we pay 20% plus copays plus the whole deductable first, up to a yearly out of pocket maximum of $5,000 which they recently bumped up to $6,500.
So the most we will pay in a given year is now $6,500 on top of the $320 per month and on top of deductable and copays.
I had a C. delivery of twins and lots and lots of prenatal care due to twin pregnancy. Really I got 2 for the price of 1 (sorta). It was like a 50% discount on baby #2. |
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| normal deliveries |
| Amount: $9.00 not covered by insurance |
| Posted by: robyn castrop in harrison, MI. | Posted: February 8th, 2011 04:02PM |
| Hospital: grand strand general n. Myrtle beach sc | Your Insurer: tricare |
| Type of Plan: group |
| with all my deliveries we were in the military so we were very lucky. It only cost us 9.00 per day & that was only to cover the cost of meals. It didnt matter if it was for delivering babies or having any type of surgery like when i had my hysterectomy the bill was 68,000.00! My share - 27.00. Life was great when we were active duty. Now is a different story altogether. Now we have tricare-extra plus united health care neither one of them cooperate with the other so nobody pays the bill then i get charged for them. Its crazy and who knows how much either will charge. Right now i have almost 17,000.00 in past due dr. Bills & hospital bills. @ this rate i wont pay it off til im dead! |
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| Just found out I have NO maternity coverage with plan |
| Amount: $0.00 not covered by insurance |
| Posted by: Heather in Houston in Houston, TX. | Posted: April 7th, 2011 03:04PM |
| Hospital: UNK | Your Insurer: CIGNA |
| Type of Plan: PPO |
| I am 16 wks and just found out that we have zero maternity coverage. Apparently in Texas there are no private health plans that offer maternity coverage. Has anyone else encountered this? We thought we were being diligent and responsible citizens by privately insuring ourselves but now we are just scared at how much having the baby is going to cost us. |
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| Recent Uncomplicated C-Section delivery |
| Amount: $4,700.00 not covered by insurance |
| Posted by: mommyofrex2011 in Orlando, FL. | Posted: April 26th, 2011 03:04PM |
| Hospital: Winnie Palmer-Orlando Health System | Your Insurer: BCBS-FL |
| Type of Plan: PPO |
| This was the cost out of pocket for the C-section, physician delivery fee, anesthesia (epidural) fee, healthy baby and hospital fees. |
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| Opted to go without maternity rider |
| Amount: $0.00 not covered by insurance |
| Posted by: charlottemom in Charlotte, NC. | Posted: April 27th, 2011 01:04PM |
| Hospital: Carolinas Medical Center | Your Insurer: BCBS NC |
| Type of Plan: PPO |
| We are self-employed and have private medical coverage. After doing some math, we opted not to purchase the optional maternity rider. It worked out fine for us. I estimated that we would have paid about the same with or without maternity coverage. Our insurance is required by law to cover pregnancy complications (which I didn't have - but it would have covered them). Our OB gave us a package price for 13 appointments, basic testing & delivery, and then we had an additional bill from the hospital. We would have paid less if we had group coverage through an employer, but private health coverage is just crazy expensive! I just found out I'm pregnant again, and we're going the same route. |
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| Hospital costs for vaginal delivery no complications atlanta GA |
| Amount: $9,056.90 not covered by insurance |
| Posted by: atlanta mom in atlanta, GA. | Posted: June 9th, 2011 05:06AM |
| Hospital: piedmont | Your Insurer: coventry |
| Type of Plan: pos conversion |
room & board 1,790
Pharmacy 870
Surgery supplies 321
Lab 588
Recovery room 1,848
Labor room / deliver 3,639
total = 9,056 |
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| Home delivery is the bomb! |
| Amount: $600.00 not covered by insurance |
| Posted by: Trena in Mesa, AZ. | Posted: July 12th, 2011 12:07PM |
| Hospital: NONE! | Your Insurer: BCBS |
| Type of Plan: PPO |
| Paid $2000 upfront to Midwife, delivered at home which was absolutely the best experience. Insurance reimbursed me 70% of cost for an "out-of-network" provider so total cost was $600. I will do it again when I have more kids. (Delivered December 2010) |
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| Save your money |
| Amount: $2.95 not covered by insurance |
| Posted by: dad the deliverer in Duffield, VA. | Posted: September 27th, 2011 09:09AM |
| Hospital: None | Your Insurer: My checking account |
| Type of Plan: uninsured |
| We recently had our 6th home birth. I (daddy) delivered just like the last three. We had great midwives for the first three and they were great about educating us and we felt confident that birth was not a medical emergency that required hospitals, inconvenienced doctors, or ridiculous bills. So yes, for about $3 (cost of an umbilical clamp) our birth experiences are quite affordable. Other misc. expenses-blood pressure cuff, doppler, (to monitor fetal heartbeat) urinalysis strips, iron test kits, circumcision, and immunizations. |
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| Birthing Center |
| Amount: $1,462.00 not covered by insurance |
| Posted by: Water baby momma in Phoenix, AZ. | Posted: November 23rd, 2011 09:11AM |
| Hospital: Blossom Birth and Wellness Center | Your Insurer: BCBS |
| Type of Plan: PPO |
| Total amount was 3,400 but my deductible reimbursement and flex spending account worked wonders. =) Had a natural water birth. no complications. |
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| emergency caesarean + 2 nights NICU |
| Amount: $6,000.00 not covered by insurance |
| Posted by: Daddy in Portland, OR. | Posted: December 21st, 2011 01:12PM |
| Hospital: Providence St. Vincent | Your Insurer: United |
| Type of Plan: 1000 deduct 80/20% |
| We are still getting bills after 8 weeks but it is already > 40k. We had to meet the out of pocket maximum of 3k for mom, and then again for baby. The only nice thing was we didnt have to reach the deductible first for the baby, but we easily would have with his bill over 17k. This is absolutely outrageous for a fully insured family. Thankfully we have a healthy baby but wtf is up with the expense? |
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| $150 |
| Amount: $150.00 not covered by insurance |
| Posted by: AC in Reno in Reno, NV. | Posted: January 10th, 2012 02:01PM |
| Hospital: Renown | Your Insurer: Hometown Health |
| Type of Plan: Open Choice HMO |
| Flat fee is $150, regardless of complications or type of delivery. Insurance covers everything at 100% with no deductible or co-insurance. Costs me $65/paycheck (every other week). Totally worth it! |
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