These numbers are scary, I'm so thankful for the insurance we have. I have Kaiser through DH's work and when I had DS all I paid was $150. That was for an induction and I spent 4 days at the hospital. DS ended up being in NICU, I never had to pay anything more. All of my appointments have no cost, my ultrasounds have no out of pocket expense. Neither does any of my lab work. DH sometimes mentions that he wants to find work elsewhere but I keep telling him that he needs to stick it out. Our insurance is really good and he's not going to get that so easily somewhere else.
I have a big deductible - $3500, but once we meet it my insurance takes care of 100%. We pay our entire deductible to my doctor's office before the baby is born. I don't even know what the total fee would be if we didn't have insurance. Thank goodness for it!
Wow, some of you guys are super lucky with insurance! I have an out-of-pocket max of $2500, so we are prepared to pay that at some point this year. Some of it came earlier than expected since I passed out and had to go to the ER and then have follow-up cardiology tests done. My cousin said that a local hospital bills about $18,000 for a normal vaginal delivery. I'm pretty sure I'll get to $2500 easily! I haven't heard of a delivery fee, so far I haven't paid anything for prenatal care. But after getting multiple ER bills for large, random amounts of money with no idea what they're actually for, I pretty much don't care anymore. I would just say to figure out what your out-of-pocket max is and budget for that.
Some of these prices are scary. I'm extremely grateful for the good insurance plan that i have (I won't say great). If nothing has changed policy wise from when I had my son, my co-pay will be $300. My son was in the NICU for 4 days and so he had a $300 co-pay also. Everything else is covered throughout the pregnancy except for genetic testing and i have to pay a co-pay for some of my labs.
Honestly the higher numbers are only scary if you're not prepared for it. We had new insurance for our last pregnancy, and we made the mistake of blindly listening to DH's company line of "our insurance is GREAT!" Yes, that's true, but there was still a substantial bill at the end of the day due to our deductible.
I truly don't mean to sound sanctimonious, but if anyone is even a little unsure of their coverage, it's worth sitting down with your OB or hospital's billing department to figure out exactly what you'll be responsible for. We ended up with $6,500 in bills due to emergency situations last pregnancy, which fortunately at the time wasn't an issue for us, but if it were a few years earlier it would have financially broken us. It just makes me nervous when people assume certain charges don't apply to them but don't actually KNOW. That was us, and it sucked!
Agree 100%. We are on a high deductible insurance plan, we pay $5450 for a family ($2600 for an individual) and we pay $0 in monthly premiums, and once we hit our out of pocket max, everything is covered 100% (this includes prescriptions, chiropractic care, physical therapy, etc) as long as we go to a doctor that is in network, and the vast majority of doctors and hospitals in my area are in network. We knew this all upfront, so with dd and with this baby we made sure to save that $5450 prior to the birth...be that with tax returns, bonuses, or just monthly savings. Not saying everyone can do this, but since I'm a SAHM, we can't afford to have medical bills looming over us after the birth of a baby. At our OB office, at my 12 week appointment they have a mandatory meeting with their business office to go over the cost of delivery. I agree that anyone who is unsure, talk to the billing department at your hospital. It's no fun to get blindsided. If we hadn't known prior to delivery about the cost, it would've been a huge stress for us, so I get where others are coming from. I have several friends still paying medical bills from delivery of their children because they had no idea of the costs.
Also, maybe a UO, but I disagree that Canadian healthcare as a blanket statement is better than what we have here in the US. You are also paying for healthcare, and from what I've read it ain't cheap! You're just paying it all upfront in taxes out of your paycheck, but I'd be willing to bet that for a family of 4, you're paying into your healthcare system in taxes at least what my family pays per year if we hit our max....and that's very rare for us. Last year I think we paid less than $2000 for our whole family in healthcare (again, no monthly premiums)...we didn't come close to hitting our out of pocket max. And I've also read that there isn't a lot of choice for providers and I've seen posters on the bump complaining about the long wait to see doctors in Canada (perhaps in certain areas?). I'm pretty happy with what I've got personally. There's no perfect system, the US healthcare system is certainly not without flaws, same with any other country. Sorry if that sounds ranty, it's not meant to be.
We have $500 individual deductibles and a $1000 family deductible, so once that is met we pay nothing out of pocket. My husband was admitted to the hospital in early March for two nights so that cleared his deductible up pretty quickly and then between our three kids and myself we had no problem hitting the deductible. Nothing g else will come out of pocket for the remainder of pregnancy and the subsequent delivery.. hospital charges for my other three kids have been about 3-5k all 100% covered.
We didn't pay a delivery fee with DD, and I ended up with a section. But our insurance was phenomenal, so we had probably already hit our out of pocket by the time she was born. With this pregnancy we haven't had any meetings with the financial planners at our OB office yet, but we have just budgeted enough to pay our out of pocket if it poop hits the fan, and then afterward if we have extra $$ we will put it toward the babe.
Thanks for bringing this up. I called my insurance company to check yesterday since some of the big numbers here scared me! Thankfully, we have great insurance, and I learned that 100% of pre and post natal care and delivery are covered.
I pay nothing for my regular prenatal checkups; all of our "preventive care" visits are free, regardless of the doctor or reason, so I can go get a physical or my annual GYN appt and those are totally covered. For delivery, it's 20% of the total bill, but our local hospital network is a nonprofit 501C3 and has financial assistance for anyone who needs it and is qualified.
DH has some chronic health issues so we are intimately familiar with the local ERs but we have never paid a single bill from the hospital because of that fabulous financial assistance available (we still have to pay separate lab fees and doctor fees, but those are usually just a couple hundred dollars, vs. the thousands we have to pay when he gets admitted overnight).
So looking at your hospital's financial policy might be worth looking into. If you don't qualify or they don't have a financial assistance program like ours, I'm sure they do payment plans and the like. They'd rather get your money in increments than have to hunt you down and fight for it.
Countdown to Baby H! Mommy to Elizabeth (6/18/09), preemie at 34 weeks
I pay nothing for my regular prenatal checkups; all of our "preventive care" visits are free, regardless of the doctor or reason, so I can go get a physical or my annual GYN appt and those are totally covered. For delivery, it's 20% of the total bill, but our local hospital network is a nonprofit 501C3 and has financial assistance for anyone who needs it and is qualified.
DH has some chronic health issues so we are intimately familiar with the local ERs but we have never paid a single bill from the hospital because of that fabulous financial assistance available (we still have to pay separate lab fees and doctor fees, but those are usually just a couple hundred dollars, vs. the thousands we have to pay when he gets admitted overnight).
So looking at your hospital's financial policy might be worth looking into. If you don't qualify or they don't have a financial assistance program like ours, I'm sure they do payment plans and the like. They'd rather get your money in increments than have to hunt you down and fight for it.
Isn't that pretty standard, regardless of your plan?
Just a blanket comment: The moral of the story here is to know your insurance plan. Getting surprised with bills at the end of the pregnancy is not that fun. I'd also hesitate to crow about your "omg great insurance!" simply because so much is "free." High deductibles do not mean bad insurance. We personally chose that route because we pay FAR less in monthly premiums and for our family that makes sense. We'd rather have that money in our pocket every month, and make sure we have enough in savings to cover big medical events should they arise. We did all the research and no matter which plan you choose, they all even out in the end. Trust me, the insurance companies get their money one way or the other!
Also, maybe a UO, but I disagree that Canadian healthcare as a blanket statement is better than what we have here in the US. You are also paying for healthcare, and from what I've read it ain't cheap! You're just paying it all upfront in taxes out of your paycheck, but I'd be willing to bet that for a family of 4, you're paying into your healthcare system in taxes at least what my family pays per year if we hit our max....and that's very rare for us. Last year I think we paid less than $2000 for our whole family in healthcare (again, no monthly premiums)...we didn't come close to hitting our out of pocket max. And I've also read that there isn't a lot of choice for providers and I've seen posters on the bump complaining about the long wait to see doctors in Canada (perhaps in certain areas?). I'm pretty happy with what I've got personally. There's no perfect system, the US healthcare system is certainly not without flaws, same with any other country. Sorry if that sounds ranty, it's not meant to be.
Sure...but you better never become unemployed, or retire a minute before medicare kicks in. And definitely make sure you don't need long term care once you're elderly. If you become disabled, make sure you're "disabled enough" to get benefits according to the federal govt. Also make sure that you've got SOME kind of coverage too, because you'll be fined if you don't - and those fees won't get you any kind of retroactive medical bill coverage or anything. And if you don't have coverage and you do have a medical emergency, you will find yourself in good company since medical debt is the #1 cause of bankruptcy in the US.
Sorry to be preachy and contrary...kind of. Things are shit here, and that is a fact....(coming from a nurse).
ETA: And if you don't think you're paying for the ungodly large number of people in any given hospital who don't pay their medical bills (and are frequent flyers, or have been admitted for 3+ months because they have nowhere else to go), well then I have some bad news for you....
@NoraAurora If you read my post I never proclaimed the US to be the picture of excellence in terms of our healthcare. In fact, I said ours has flaws. However, I do like my current insurance plan, I don't think it's a crime to say so. It works well for us, we are financially prepared for the high deductible, and we have a very large amount of money in emergency savings in the case of any job loss, being that I am a SAHM. (eta: and to clarify, we worked our ASSES off to save that money prior to me quitting).
I think like @kmalls said, the takeaway here is to know your insurance. People being unprepared for things like having a baby are one of the reasons people in the US have large medical bills that they have trouble paying for. Also, I took issue with Canadians coming and essentially bragging that their deliveries are free. They're not. They are paying for their deliveries through taxes.
I'm thankful I live in Canada, so it doesn't mater what it takes its all covered by adorable medical insurance (we pay $150/month for a family of 4) but my emergency c section with DD1 was $18,000 worth of stuff, cause both of us were in trouble and an extra long hospital stay. Luckily it didn't cost us anything.
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Some of these prices are scary. I'm extremely grateful for the good insurance plan that i have (I won't say great). If nothing has changed policy wise from when I had my son, my co-pay will be $300. My son was in the NICU for 4 days and so he had a $300 co-pay also. Everything else is covered throughout the pregnancy except for genetic testing and i have to pay a co-pay for some of my labs.
Honestly the higher numbers are only scary if you're not prepared for it. We had new insurance for our last pregnancy, and we made the mistake of blindly listening to DH's company line of "our insurance is GREAT!" Yes, that's true, but there was still a substantial bill at the end of the day due to our deductible.
I truly don't mean to sound sanctimonious, but if anyone is even a little unsure of their coverage, it's worth sitting down with your OB or hospital's billing department to figure out exactly what you'll be responsible for. We ended up with $6,500 in bills due to emergency situations last pregnancy, which fortunately at the time wasn't an issue for us, but if it were a few years earlier it would have financially broken us. It just makes me nervous when people assume certain charges don't apply to them but don't actually KNOW. That was us, and it sucked!
Agree 100%. We are on a high deductible insurance plan, we pay $5450 for a family ($2600 for an individual) and we pay $0 in monthly premiums, and once we hit our out of pocket max, everything is covered 100% (this includes prescriptions, chiropractic care, physical therapy, etc) as long as we go to a doctor that is in network, and the vast majority of doctors and hospitals in my area are in network. We knew this all upfront, so with dd and with this baby we made sure to save that $5450 prior to the birth...be that with tax returns, bonuses, or just monthly savings. Not saying everyone can do this, but since I'm a SAHM, we can't afford to have medical bills looming over us after the birth of a baby. At our OB office, at my 12 week appointment they have a mandatory meeting with their business office to go over the cost of delivery. I agree that anyone who is unsure, talk to the billing department at your hospital. It's no fun to get blindsided. If we hadn't known prior to delivery about the cost, it would've been a huge stress for us, so I get where others are coming from. I have several friends still paying medical bills from delivery of their children because they had no idea of the costs.
Also, maybe a UO, but I disagree that Canadian healthcare as a blanket statement is better than what we have here in the US. You are also paying for healthcare, and from what I've read it ain't cheap! You're just paying it all upfront in taxes out of your paycheck, but I'd be willing to bet that for a family of 4, you're paying into your healthcare system in taxes at least what my family pays per year if we hit our max....and that's very rare for us. Last year I think we paid less than $2000 for our whole family in healthcare (again, no monthly premiums)...we didn't come close to hitting our out of pocket max. And I've also read that there isn't a lot of choice for providers and I've seen posters on the bump complaining about the long wait to see doctors in Canada (perhaps in certain areas?). I'm pretty happy with what I've got personally. There's no perfect system, the US healthcare system is certainly not without flaws, same with any other country. Sorry if that sounds ranty, it's not meant to be.
Nobody's health care system is flawless. Certain areas (mine included) are considered isolated and yes you do have to wait to see a specialist, but regular appointments aren't a problem. In BC we pay $150/month (Max premium) which is determined by your yearly income. Taxes weren't that bad, probably not much different than the states I don't imagine, max tax bracket is 43% for someone who earns $200,000 or more a year and after that is drops drastically. Canada also gives $160/a month for each child under the age of 6 for the universal child tax credit and you get more if your under a certain income. So Canada's health plan isn't that bad, and I wouldn't necessarily say that we pay for it in taxes either.
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Ugh. This post is annoying. Everyone in the end pays for everything regardless of what country you live in. I promise you, nothing in life is free (including dying, unless you plan on having a family member illegally dumping you somewhere).
Not to get into a whole debate but there's a difference between having the cost spread out among the population proportionately based on income and having people go without health insurance and thus medical care or going into lifelong debt because of an illness. Also the ability for people to get preventive care/treatment is cheaper in the long run than the alternative of having those who can't afford care to go without medical care until there is a major and costly issue.
This is getting completely off-topic so that's all I'll say on the matter. I actually watched a really interesting documentary called Code Black (on Netflix) where residents were interviewed on their experiences working in the ER of the LA County Hospital if anyone is interested (warning that parts are very graphic though).
Not to get into a whole debate but there's a difference between having the cost spread out among the population proportionately based on income and having people go without health insurance and thus medical care or going into lifelong debt because of an illness. Also the ability for people to get preventive care/treatment is cheaper in the long run than the alternative of having those who can't afford care to go without medical care until there is a major and costly issue.
This is getting completely off-topic so that's all I'll say on the matter. I actually watched a really interesting documentary called Code Black (on Netflix) where residents were interviewed on their experiences working in the ER of the LA County Hospital if anyone is interested (warning that parts are very graphic though).
Oh, you're right. We're not doing ourselves any favors by letting people go into massive amounts of medical debt, and it is a huge problem. There are definitely people with shitty (or no) health insurance, I used to be one of them.
However, I still majorly eyeroll what's her name above from Canada that is still coming on to proclaim she paid nothing for her $18k c-section. Mmmkay. Whatever you gotta tell yourself.
My doctors fee is $4700 for C-section. Luckily I have a great employer that recognize the benefits of a good health insurance plan. I have $0 deductible, will pay a total of $50 in copays for my prenatal care and $200 copay for my maternity hospital admission. I count my blessings with that because I know some moms that pay out the whoohaa for their labor and delivery.
Not to get into a whole debate but there's a difference between having the cost spread out among the population proportionately based on income and having people go without health insurance and thus medical care or going into lifelong debt because of an illness. Also the ability for people to get preventive care/treatment is cheaper in the long run than the alternative of having those who can't afford care to go without medical care until there is a major and costly issue.
This is getting completely off-topic so that's all I'll say on the matter. I actually watched a really interesting documentary called Code Black (on Netflix) where residents were interviewed on their experiences working in the ER of the LA County Hospital if anyone is interested (warning that parts are very graphic though).
Oh, you're right. We're not doing ourselves any favors by letting people go into massive amounts of medical debt, and it is a huge problem. There are definitely people with shitty (or no) health insurance, I used to be one of them.
However, I still majorly eyeroll what's her name above from Canada that is still coming on to proclaim she paid nothing for her $18k c-section. Mmmkay. Whatever you gotta tell yourself.
Not to get into a whole debate but there's a difference between having the cost spread out among the population proportionately based on income and having people go without health insurance and thus medical care or going into lifelong debt because of an illness. Also the ability for people to get preventive care/treatment is cheaper in the long run than the alternative of having those who can't afford care to go without medical care until there is a major and costly issue.
This is getting completely off-topic so that's all I'll say on the matter. I actually watched a really interesting documentary called Code Black (on Netflix) where residents were interviewed on their experiences working in the ER of the LA County Hospital if anyone is interested (warning that parts are very graphic though).
Oh, you're right. We're not doing ourselves any favors by letting people go into massive amounts of medical debt, and it is a
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Not to get into a whole debate but there's a difference between having the cost spread out among the population proportionately based on income and having people go without health insurance and thus medical care or going into lifelong debt because of an illness. Also the ability for people to get preventive care/treatment is cheaper in the long run than the alternative of having those who can't afford care to go without medical care until there is a major and costly issue.
This is getting completely off-topic so that's all I'll say on the matter. I actually watched a really interesting documentary called Code Black (on Netflix) where residents were interviewed on their experiences working in the ER of the LA County Hospital if anyone is interested (warning that parts are very graphic though).
Oh, you're right. We're not doing ourselves any favors by letting people go into massive amounts of medical debt, and it is a huge problem. There are definitely people with shitty (or no) health insurance, I used to be one of them.
However, I still majorly eyeroll what's her name above from Canada that is still coming on to proclaim she paid nothing for her $18k c-section. Mmmkay. Whatever you gotta tell yourself.
More like whatever you have to say to make yourself feel better. I eye roll you right back for that Comment. Cause nope sure didn't pay $18,000. I don't have to tell myself anything, cause I'm right. My premiums in one year are $1800, so far from that actually.
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Re: Delivery Fees
These numbers are scary, I'm so thankful for the insurance we have. I have Kaiser through DH's work and when I had DS all I paid was $150. That was for an induction and I spent 4 days at the hospital. DS ended up being in NICU, I never had to pay anything more. All of my appointments have no cost, my ultrasounds have no out of pocket expense. Neither does any of my lab work. DH sometimes mentions that he wants to find work elsewhere but I keep telling him that he needs to stick it out. Our insurance is really good and he's not going to get that so easily somewhere else.
It's a boy!
Also, maybe a UO, but I disagree that Canadian healthcare as a blanket statement is better than what we have here in the US. You are also paying for healthcare, and from what I've read it ain't cheap! You're just paying it all upfront in taxes out of your paycheck, but I'd be willing to bet that for a family of 4, you're paying into your healthcare system in taxes at least what my family pays per year if we hit our max....and that's very rare for us. Last year I think we paid less than $2000 for our whole family in healthcare (again, no monthly premiums)...we didn't come close to hitting our out of pocket max. And I've also read that there isn't a lot of choice for providers and I've seen posters on the bump complaining about the long wait to see doctors in Canada (perhaps in certain areas?). I'm pretty happy with what I've got personally. There's no perfect system, the US healthcare system is certainly not without flaws, same with any other country. Sorry if that sounds ranty, it's not meant to be.
With this pregnancy we haven't had any meetings with the financial planners at our OB office yet, but we have just budgeted enough to pay our out of pocket if it poop hits the fan, and then afterward if we have extra $$ we will put it toward the babe.
DH has some chronic health issues so we are intimately familiar with the local ERs but we have never paid a single bill from the hospital because of that fabulous financial assistance available (we still have to pay separate lab fees and doctor fees, but those are usually just a couple hundred dollars, vs. the thousands we have to pay when he gets admitted overnight).
So looking at your hospital's financial policy might be worth looking into. If you don't qualify or they don't have a financial assistance program like ours, I'm sure they do payment plans and the like. They'd rather get your money in increments than have to hunt you down and fight for it.
Mommy to Elizabeth (6/18/09), preemie at 34 weeks
Team Blue!
Just a blanket comment: The moral of the story here is to know your insurance plan. Getting surprised with bills at the end of the pregnancy is not that fun. I'd also hesitate to crow about your "omg great insurance!" simply because so much is "free." High deductibles do not mean bad insurance. We personally chose that route because we pay FAR less in monthly premiums and for our family that makes sense. We'd rather have that money in our pocket every month, and make sure we have enough in savings to cover big medical events should they arise. We did all the research and no matter which plan you choose, they all even out in the end. Trust me, the insurance companies get their money one way or the other!
Sorry to be preachy and contrary...kind of. Things are shit here, and that is a fact....(coming from a nurse).
ETA: And if you don't think you're paying for the ungodly large number of people in any given hospital who don't pay their medical bills (and are frequent flyers, or have been admitted for 3+ months because they have nowhere else to go), well then I have some bad news for you....
I think like @kmalls said, the takeaway here is to know your insurance. People being unprepared for things like having a baby are one of the reasons people in the US have large medical bills that they have trouble paying for. Also, I took issue with Canadians coming and essentially bragging that their deliveries are free. They're not. They are paying for their deliveries through taxes.
This is getting completely off-topic so that's all I'll say on the matter. I actually watched a really interesting documentary called Code Black (on Netflix) where residents were interviewed on their experiences working in the ER of the LA County Hospital if anyone is interested (warning that parts are very graphic though).
However, I still majorly eyeroll what's her name above from Canada that is still coming on to proclaim she paid nothing for her $18k c-section. Mmmkay. Whatever you gotta tell yourself.