These Kids Are Too Expensive

As someone who's interested in women's health and fascinated by labor and delivery, I have a lot of mom and baby-related recommended posts on my social media feeds. More recently, I've been coming across Instagram posts where American mothers share their outrageous hospital bills after having a baby and compare the costs to countries with universal healthcare. Even the television series The Office touches on this, with Pam trying to "hold in" her baby girl till midnight because her health insurance only covers a two night stay at the hospital. In 2022, the average cost for having a baby in America was $18,865 (without insurance). If you are having a cesarian section, you can expect to pay closer to $26,000. These prices are exorbitant compared to somewhere like the Netherlands, for instance, where in 2017 it cost an average of $3,600 to have a baby via standard delivery. For those in the US who have health insurance, costs are greatly reduced, but with roughly 26 million Americans uninsured, many face heavy financial burdens when becoming a parent. 

Placing such a heavy cost on having a baby adds to the mountain of stress and worry new mothers are already facing. By turning birth into a profit, our healthcare system devalues the mental and physical well-being of parents and newborns and takes control of their birthing plans. Like Pam in The Office, many mothers may hold off on seeking care with the hope of reducing their hospital bill. This can exacerbate problems down the line and create issues that could have been avoided if families had access to affordable healthcare. While I know no healthcare system is perfect, the US still has much to learn when it comes to caring for birthing parents. 

References:

https://www.forbes.com/advisor/health-insurance/average-childbirth-cost/#:~:text=Average%20Cost%20of%20Childbirth%20in,don't%20have%20health%20insurance%3F

https://www.forbes.com/sites/niallmccarthy/2020/01/29/the-us-is-the-worlds-most-expensive-nation-for-childbirth-infographic/?sh=35f060262ec7

https://www.pgpf.org/blog/2023/11/the-share-of-americans-without-health-insurance-in-2022-matched-a-record-low 

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