How can anybody afford to have a baby

[rivan]

Good lord your work insurance fucking SUCKS. And your independent options are even worse! $5000 deductible? Jeeez!

This. I think we put out around $300 total.

Of course, they're expensive as hell after they come out, and insurance picks up none of that

 

[rcpratt]

I have a new respect for how good my employer's insurance coverage is after this thread.

 

[lupi]

spent maybe 200.

 

[KeithTalent]

WTF, 8K just to spit out a kid? Damn.

You insurance seems to be the fail, even though it seems insane that anyone should have to pay 8K just to have the kid.

KT

 

[AstroManLuca]

WTF, 8K just to spit out a kid? Damn.

You insurance seems to be the fail, even though it seems insane that anyone should have to pay 8K just to have the kid.

KT

Medical costs are out of control in general. Before long they'll be charging $5,000 just to have a doctor look at a rash for five minutes.

 

[Codewiz]

Either you have the WORLD's worst insurance policy OR you can't read.......

Put another notch for a person that just had to pay $100 copay for my son to be born and that was with a c-section.

I did have to pay $500 for a billy blanket because my son was jaundice.

How about you post the description of benefits for you plan. They usually provide it in a PDF

 

[thegimp03]

I glanced at what my plan covers under Maternity Pre/Post Natal with no annual deductible.

Initial office visit - $20 copay;
Subsequent prenatal, postnatal and physician's delivery charges - No charge

 

[JulesMaximus]

Common, natural, and yet still optional. I see the numbers you guys are reporting and I'm stunned your out-of-pocket cost is not higher. I won't say any more because this isn't P&N.

Again, what the fuck are we paying hundreds of dollars a month for insurance for? Do you know what my premium is without COBRA for my family? $1600 a month for my wife, who is very healthy, my 8 year old son, who is also very healthy, and me, who has no medical issues either. $1600 is more than my god damned mortgage payment!!!

So, I'm paying almost $20,000 a year for insurance I rarely use and on top of that they don't cover the birth of a child? What kind of horse shit insurance plan is that?

I'm stunned people put up with this bullshit. Where is all that fucking money going?

 

[ElFenix]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Midwifery#United_States

 

[jlee]

Some of your insurance plans suck. Good thing you all make $100k/yr to offset it!

 

[Alienwho]

Again, what the fuck are we paying hundreds of dollars a month for insurance for? Do you know what my premium is without COBRA for my family? $1600 a month for my wife, who is very healthy, my 8 year old son, who is also very healthy, and me, who has no medical issues either. $1600 is more than my god damned mortgage payment!!!

So, I'm paying almost $20,000 a year for insurance I rarely use and on top of that they don't cover the birth of a child? What kind of horse shit insurance plan is that?

I'm stunned people put up with this bullshit. Where is all that fucking money going?

This is exactly what I'm talking about. No wonder the entire country is so split on the health care situation. 1/3 of the people have health insurance the way it should be (you pay your monthly premiums and don't have to pay anything else but a small copay). Another third gets royally screwed (you pay huge monthly premiums and still have super high deductibles that are higher than your yearly usage anyway). The last 1/3 doesn't have insurance, doesn't care, and doesn't pay for any medical bills at all.

We're both suckers stuck in the middle.

 

[GTaudiophile]

Actually, that is just the tip of the iceberg. According to a recent WSJ article, if you had a baby in 2009, the estimated cost to raise that ONE child to the age of 18 is just under $225,000. This does not include the cost of college tuition.

 

[AreaCode707]

This is exactly what I'm talking about. No wonder the entire country is so split on the health care situation. 1/3 of the people have health insurance the way it should be (you pay your monthly premiums and don't have to pay anything else but a small copay). Another third gets royally screwed (you pay huge monthly premiums and still have super high deductibles that are higher than your yearly usage anyway). The last 1/3 doesn't have insurance, doesn't care, and doesn't pay for any medical bills at all.

We're both suckers stuck in the middle.

Fourths, not thirds. 3/4 are as you describe. The last 1/4 doesn't have insurance but goes to emergency care, gets cancer treatments, then declares bankruptcy. That's where the money goes.

 

[rcpratt]

Actually, that is just the tip of the iceberg. According to a recent WSJ article, if you had a baby in 2009, the estimated cost to raise that ONE child to the age of 18 is just under $225,000. This does not include the cost of college tuition.

Yeah, but they do stuff like add in a chunk of that house that you got after you had a kid but probably would have bought anyways. But yeah, undoubtedly lots of cash monies.

 

[Mahaguru]

Again, what the fuck are we paying hundreds of dollars a month for insurance for? Do you know what my premium is without COBRA for my family? $1600 a month for my wife, who is very healthy, my 8 year old son, who is also very healthy, and me, who has no medical issues either. $1600 is more than my god damned mortgage payment!!!

So, I'm paying almost $20,000 a year for insurance I rarely use and on top of that they don't cover the birth of a child? What kind of horse shit insurance plan is that?

I'm stunned people put up with this bullshit. Where is all that fucking money going?

WHAT!!! You dare question insurance and the health care system? You sir have committed the ultimate crime!

On a serious note, the OP didn't factor one thing in the calculation. If there is a complication, better add 2 zeros to that number.

 

[CRXican]

easy solution

don't fucking have one

not everyone needs to have kids

 

[holden j caufield]

Again, what the fuck are we paying hundreds of dollars a month for insurance for? Do you know what my premium is without COBRA for my family? $1600 a month for my wife, who is very healthy, my 8 year old son, who is also very healthy, and me, who has no medical issues either. $1600 is more than my god damned mortgage payment!!!

So, I'm paying almost $20,000 a year for insurance I rarely use and on top of that they don't cover the birth of a child? What kind of horse shit insurance plan is that?

I'm stunned people put up with this bullshit. Where is all that fucking money going?

Dude you're getting violated, healthcare is the next bubble to burst if people are smart enough to realize it. There is no way people should put up with anything close to these rates. But if you have a family it's a necessity and thus they think they can charge you whatever they want.

Problem is the government and your congressmen are in their pockets.

 

[Mahaguru]

Actually what I want to know is how do people afford those special cases when giving birth, such as premature babies. I don't think most people have that fancy no limit insurance.