parents want a second baby.....but!!!

[Siham 0]

Hello alllll please i wat some informations , we are planing to have a second baby next year inchallah , and i wantt kknow how much do you pay when you go to see the doctor ? i dont have insurance , and i cant have it because ididnt sign it immigration forms before i come here .....

we are not ready to have a second baby cus of expenses , but inchallah next yearf evething go as we want....

i heard doctors areexpensive here but what can i do t have health insurane and what are my rights as a pregnant woman ?

thank you , im sorry im new in usa, i still dont know about the law

[Penguin_ie 5,993]

We also have no insurance, in our case because due to previous issues (infertility), no maternity care is covered in the healthcare plan, so I have some experience with this (am 39 weeks pregnant).

Usually you kind of buy a "pregnancy package" with your doctor, which includes all pre-natal visits and his attendance at the birth. How much it costs depends on where you live and the doctor; also explain that you do not have insurance, and ideally save up before you get pregnant, because they often give discounts for self-paying, and a discount for paying everything at the first visit (we got a 30% discount fore that!). Our doctor is 2300 dollars, he is a family practitioner- OB would probably be more, and a midwife in a birthing center or for a homebirth would be less.

On top of that you have your hospital stay, standard is one night for vaginal birth, 3 nights for c-section, more if there are any complications. This is around 3000 dollars for vaginal birth, 5-8 for c-section, assuming no complications.for you and baby (if you are married and your husband has health insurance, the baby may be covered which makes it a little less).

On top of that you have any tests during pregnancy- for example I had three ultrasounds, one at 6 weeks to make sure it isn't twins again, one at 20 weeks which is standard, and one at 36 weeks to measure growth- 300 dollars each. Then a few blood tests in early pregnancy and a diabetes test at 28 weeks, 144 dollars each. Now as I am close I am having NSTs (where they measure baby's heartbeat and any contractions) once a week, 100 dollars each.

This is all for a non-complicated pregnancy and birth, and as you can see it adds up... definitely worth saving up before you get pregnant!Some foreign ladies decide to have their babies at home...

[sachinky 465]

It's THAT expensive to have a freakin' baby? Man, thanks for the info, +1 for our "cons" column.

[*julez* 124]

It's THAT expensive to have a freakin' baby? Man, thanks for the info, +1 for our "cons" column.

And that's only the cost for pregnancy care! After that you have to pay for all kinds of stuff for the next 18 years at least!! I have 3 kids and its crazy expensive for everything they need and want!

[Siham 0]

OH MYYYYY GODDDD !!!! this is so expensive , i cant belive it lolol

how can i get insurance ? what about if i work parti time or full time job ?

[Mononoke28 135]

Actually the numbers Penguin_ie provided include discounts from her OB/GYN and estimates of the hospital stay. In actuality, they may be a lot higher.

Diana

[Penguin_ie 5,993]

Some jobs provide health insurance, so this is something you'd need to ask about when you have an interview. You can also get private health insurance through a company like Blue Cross Blue Shield, but usually there is a waiting period, ie you couldn't get pregnant for a year or so after starting to pay for the insurance, and private insurance is very expensive.

Does your husband have health insurance through his job? Often the easiest/ cheapest is to add the wife....

[DanielParul 50]

When I saw the hospital bill for delivery and 2 day stay, I couldn't believe it - $18k is what our insurance paid for an absolutely normal delivery. OB/Gyn visits, ultrasounds were separate. This is with no added costs of any medications or complications - just a simple normal delivery.

[Gemmie 142]

The NHS in the UK is looking better every day..

[Revenesque 2]

The NHS in the UK is looking better every day..

No kidding! Under Canada's universal healthcare, I pay zero!

[Justine+David 218]

yup...it's about 20-30k a day to stay in the NICU where I work at...and some babies stay here for months.

I've seen bills on the chart for $2 million for babies who have been here for 6 months...and most of them are on medicaid...

OP: it's really worth it to try to talk to your doctors about getting discounts...you don't want to go bankrupt over this

Edited February 19, 2010 by Justine+David

[Siham 0]

Oh my GOD !!!! im really surprised !!

no my husband doesnt have health insurance !!

so now after your messages ...the only solution i have is to wait until i get full time job !

[ourlove222 0]

I know this probably is not my business, but since it is posted on a public forum, I feel I should say this. Just last week you were saying you were going to divorce your husband, now you want a baby? I feel there are other problems you should be working on without adding financial stress of a baby in the mix...I'm just saying...

[VanessaTony 3,567]

Read this: http://www.americanpregnancy.org/planninga...healthcare.html

A friend of mine is on WIC and it really helps out. She was getting food and formula for free, not all but a lot and it really helped lower the expenses.

I didn't ask about giving birth part but I know the WIC stuff really helps.

[sachinky 465]

I'm stocking up on contraceptives as we speak.