Pregnancy costs

AJluvsLI

So I called our insurance company and am trying to figure out just how much it's going to cost.

They sent this to me:

"Your plan treats maternity like any other "illness" (yeah, that made me laugh) so there is no?special benefit, it just pays like any other diagnosis. For example,?your inpatient stay to deliver the baby is just an inpatient stay, so if?you are using network providers, your calendar year deductible of $1000??applies and then once that is met --- pays at 80% of the contracted rate up to your $2,000 out of pocket max. "

I'm just wondering if this is about average in terms of insurance because I actually don't like our insurance company very much at all.

How much are you guys averaging out for doctor and hospital bills??

roxyu

I just got a letter from my OB's office today that gave me an estimate of vaginal delivery:

@$7500 for vag delivery, insurance pays 100% after $150 co-pay.  I almost fell off my chair in shock, but I'm feeling skeptical.  I think they aren't adding my room fee, epidural, ice chips, etc...that they count as 'miscellaneous fees'.  I'm sure I'll have a fat bill waiting for me when the babe comes.

wordtoyourmother

that's a pretty decent insurance policy. 

Doctor's office visits are always $15 copay , diagnostics are 100% and hospital stays are covered at 90%.  I have the same oop max of $2k.  My deductible is $500

*edit* oh and obviously whatever the delivery costs are would be deemed as a "hospital stay"

attyalice

My insurance is excellent... I get a deductable credit each year, which carries over.  I have save my credit for the last three (thanks to being healthy) and thus they will pay my whole out of pocket deductible.  After that (they will pay the first 5k)  it is 95% them, 5% us.... SOOO lucky.... and it costs me $7 a paycheck... God Bless Government Jobs:)

Jenn.J.

Wow, that's crazy. I pay $15 for the first prenatal vistit, then the rest if covered at 100%, including delivery. DH's healthcare rocks.

AJluvsLI

roxyu:

I just got a letter from my OB's office today that gave me an estimate of vaginal delivery:

@$7500 for vag delivery, insurance pays 100% after $150 co-pay.? I almost fell off my chair in shock, but I'm feeling skeptical.? I think they aren't adding my room fee, epidural, ice chips, etc...that they count as 'miscellaneous fees'.? I'm sure I'll have a fat bill waiting for me when the babe comes.

Wow that sounds really good. ?I think ?my sister said she and her husband ended up paying $5,000 of total bills and everything. ?That seemed a little high to me and I hope it doesn't come to more than 2-3,000?

phinneygirl79

We will not have to pay anything. My husband's company has one of the best insurance plans in the country (so says our friends who work in healthcare). There are zero copays or deductables.

AJluvsLI

Jenn.J.:

Wow, that's crazy. I pay $15 for the first prenatal vistit, then the rest if covered at 100%, including delivery. DH's healthcare rocks.

I am jealous. ?:P?

roxyu

phinneygirl79:

We will not have to pay anything. My husband's company has one of the best insurance plans in the country (so says our friends who work in healthcare). There are zero copays or deductables.

wordtoyourmother

Jenn.J.:

Wow, that's crazy. I pay $15 for the first prenatal vistit, then the rest if covered at 100%, including delivery. DH's healthcare rocks.

luuuuuuucky

AJluvsLI

We used to have a really good insurance plan and it only cost us $70/mo (awesome) but Jack's office just switched to this other one that is $300/mo. ?

It's a lot more and so now we really need to save up. ?It's going to go up to $600/mo. once the baby is born so I think we're going to insure the baby under a different policy.

But on the bright side, at least now we have vision and dental...?

SharonWantsABaby

AJluvsLI:

roxyu:

I just got a letter from my OB's office today that gave me an estimate of vaginal delivery:

@$7500 for vag delivery, insurance pays 100% after $150 co-pay.  I almost fell off my chair in shock, but I'm feeling skeptical.  I think they aren't adding my room fee, epidural, ice chips, etc...that they count as 'miscellaneous fees'.  I'm sure I'll have a fat bill waiting for me when the babe comes.

Wow that sounds really good.  I think  my sister said she and her husband ended up paying $5,000 of total bills and everything.  That seemed a little high to me and I hope it doesn't come to more than 2-3,000 

It can't be higher than $3,000 for you. ($1,000 deduct. + $2,000 oop max)

Expect to pay that entire amount, though.

OregonMama

roxyu:

I just got a letter from my OB's office today that gave me an estimate of vaginal delivery:

@$7500 for vag delivery, insurance pays 100% after $150 co-pay.  I almost fell off my chair in shock, but I'm feeling skeptical.  I think they aren't adding my room fee, epidural, ice chips, etc...that they count as 'miscellaneous fees'.  I'm sure I'll have a fat bill waiting for me when the babe comes.

This is most likely just for the OB's charges . I was in health insurance for over 8 years.  There are two sets of charges - one for your "global" OB fees (all your visits, one routine ultrasound, doesn't include any extra tests) and the other charge is for the actual delivery at the hospital (including the room stay and all the extras that happen at the hospital).

Always ask your insurance about both.  Get quotes for not only the OB/Midwife global care but also your hospital stay.  Find out how many days you are allowed for vag vs. c-section delivery.  Most cover 2 days for vaginal delivery and 4 for c-section (this may be a federal mandate, but I can't remember).

The most education you can get and the most clarity you can find out, the better prepared you will be.

Also remember all extra ultrasounds are usually processed under lab benefits, not your global fee.  Most policies allow only one under the global fee.  And check on all labs/tests the OB wants to run.  Not all will be covered by insurance and a lot will also fall out of the global fee.

AJluvsLI

OregonMama:

Also remember all extra ultrasounds are usually processed under lab benefits, not your global fee.? Most policies allow only one under the global fee.? And check on all labs/tests the OB wants to run.? Not all will be covered by insurance and a lot will also fall out of the global fee.

How many u/s are usually covered??

HeyyRed

FREE IN CANADA!!!!!

OregonMama

One ultrasound is usually covered under the global fee (although double check, some insurance carriers process it as lab).  Any extra ultrasound must be for medical necessity and is processed under lab also.

BlairWaldorf

That's exactly what my insurance is like. ?Prenatal care falls under "general," which means I must meet my $500 deductible, then I have a $3,000 out of pocket max that is met by paying 20% of all services. ?After I reach $3,000 the insurance covers 100%.

OregonMama

HeyyRed:

FREE IN CANADA!!!!!

I wish I lived in Canada

BlairWaldorf

fwiw, we are fully prepared to pay $3,000 for me, plus $3,000 for the baby should s/he stay in the hospital for care past my discharge. ?So we saved the $6,000 before TTC.

AJluvsLI

BlairWaldorf:

fwiw, we are fully prepared to pay $3,000 for me, plus $3,000 for the baby should s/he stay in the hospital for care past my discharge. ?So we saved the $6,000 before TTC.

Well Jack and I ?can pay the $3,000 but we are trying to save up for a new house which is why I'm ?hoping it won't be as much.

While I love our house and we put a lot of work into remodeling I just don't think it's going to be big enough for a growing family.?

sunnydays99

Awww, it feels great to live in Canada!!  I don't have to pay a penny for anything!

kryssy

We pay $10 co-pay per visit and $100 for the hospital stay, everything else is covered 100% with no deductible.  But my OB is on my insurance's "prefered provider list" (thank God).

ENev

I think it'll cost $2,000 for us, as that's our OOP max.

smilelari

My insurance is complicated.  First I get $1000 that is paid 100% (a Health Reimbursement Account).  Then there is an $800 "bridge" (basically a deductible) that I have to pay 100% OOP.  Then it is a 90/10 split.  Normally I have $$$ left over in my HRA that gets rolled over and would cover anything in the bridge or my 10% copay, but alas IF is expensive so I have eaten up all rollover funds from all previous years.  My annual out of pocket max is $5K and I get an extra $100 in HRA funds for participating in an e-checkup program.

So, it really just depends on what sort of child birth experience we have.  I will likely put 2-3K in my FSA.  They have other plans that I could enroll in (enrollment is in July) that are more $15 copay for visit, $100 copay for delivery types of plans, but the premiums are so much higher that the plan that I have ends up being cheaper even when we have a really expensive year.

smilelari

lolonyo:

Awww, it feels great to live in Canada!!  I don't have to pay a penny for anything!

Except on your tax bill, LOL

MrsL.inMarch

Roxy, I'm pretty sure your 7500 estimate is for your OB not the hospital like pp said. My delivery was well over 25K, nothing special happened either. I've received probably 10 separate EOB's from my insurance including one they paid directly to my OB for her work. I could be wrong, but 7500 total for delivery seems really low. Some people around here were billed over 100K (complicated stuff, c-sections etc).

I didn't pay a penny from first OB appt through hospital discharge, except our portion for circumcision which was $150.

NELSONSGIRL09

lolonyo:

Awww, it feels great to live in Canada!!  I don't have to pay a penny for anything!

 

This!! we have an amazing country don't we

MrsF2007

$0.00

My job sucks but the benefits are worth staying. Obviously.

CrazyChef

I'm having a super-fret day.  I decided I was going to buckle down and figure out my predicament-- I have insurance that wont cover my pregnancy, make too much to qualify for Medicaid, but not enough to actually, ya know, be able to pay for extraneous things outside of my bills and a few groceries for me and the puppy.  (Stop the rant you're about to spew-- I will have a combined income with DF by the time baby gets here so it will be able to have a bed and stuff)

I called the hospital, which I'm lucky to say has been rated to have one of the top maternity wards in the country.  And they told me a vag DELIVERY (not including prenatal care) is going to be close to 16,000.

Lets talk about panic.

Mrs.Husband

A little late, but wanted to share...$20 copay at the first maternity visit, $0 deductible and $150 per night for the stay in the hospital. That's it.

mrsandrews07

each doctors visit is $20. The delivery will be around $3500. We have to pay a one time $200 and I can have whatever done and stay as long as I want. We deserve that kind of treatment for paying $700 a month for our insurance!

emilyhellacool

We're military and being seen on base, so I think we end up paying a whooping $15 for my hospital food/fee when we deliver.. I don't know why they cover everything else then charge us like $15.65/day for staying in the hospital.

Anyways, some of our friends were seen off base through a different insurance program and paid about $850 for all of their copays and premiums, etc. ?I think they had a 90/10 split on the ultrasounds and all that with a $20 copay for office visits. ?The labor/delivery was covered 100%.. so I don't know if that helps any. ???

smilelari

CrazyChef:

I'm having a super-fret day.  I decided I was going to buckle down and figure out my predicament-- I have insurance that wont cover my pregnancy, make too much to qualify for Medicaid, but not enough to actually, ya know, be able to pay for extraneous things outside of my bills and a few groceries for me and the puppy.  (Stop the rant you're about to spew-- I will have a combined income with DF by the time baby gets here so it will be able to have a bed and stuff)

I called the hospital, which I'm lucky to say has been rated to have one of the top maternity wards in the country.  And they told me a vag DELIVERY (not including prenatal care) is going to be close to 16,000.

Lets talk about panic.

See if you can get on FI's insurance