Pregnant and Uninsured - How much am I in for?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I just found out I'm pregnant with my second - a huge surprise. I've been laid off and am uninsured. Not the most choice situation. Has anyone gone thru pregnancy uninsured? And if so, how much did you have to pay for care and delivery?

I used Birthcare in Alexandria, and the entire bill for pregnancy, birth, and post partum was $3900. They are absolutely wonderful. There are other great midwifery options in the area who might charge less or be willing to arrange an extended payment plan. Good luck.

Totally agree with this^^^. With my first, we birthed with the Family Health and Birth Center in DC -- it's a similar model to Birthcare, though the center has a more urban feel as it's in the middle of NE DC. We had insurance, but went over all the costs w/ the billing department before the birth b/c that's their protocol, and the cost was somewhere between $3500 and 4000. They have excellent midwives there, and all the support staff was wonderful, too. I would recommend checking them out if you're open to a midwife-assisted birth (at a much lower cost). GL.

PP again, I forgot to mention, FHBC also has payment/installment plans; and the amount I quoted was for everything (prenatal care, labor, delivery, post partum care) except for meds if you need them. And, many of their patients get assistance (Medicaid, WIC, etc.). I agree w/ the PPs' suggestions to look into those options unless you know you're disqualified from them by virtue of a partner's income.

[Anonymous]

can you go out of the country?

[Anonymous]

If you don't qualify for Medicaid then you can negotiate a rate with your OB-- much cheaper than the rates the insurance company pays. You will be required to pay most, if not all, of the costs before you deliver. I would call around and see who has the best rates. Midwives will be cheaper and offer great prenatal services.

[Anonymous]

If you're pregnant and unemployed you qualify for medicaid.

[Anonymous]

How old are you?
Have you been able to sort this out?

[sybersus]

I think Medicaid has restrictions on the amount of liquid savings you can have. So if you own property you are okay, but if you have money saved for a rainy day fund you are not. It's pretty low what they allow for liquid savings -- I think under $5k. So that may not be an option.

Like PPs, I would recommend checking out home-birth midwives. Since you're uninsured, you might as well will look beyond Birthcare (where I believe the real advantage is that they take insurance) and look to others like Joey Pascarella, the MAMAS midwives, etc., who come to your home for all the prenatal visits too. There is a great list of midwives at www.birthoptionsalliance.org.

Best of luck OP. Please keep up posted on how it goes.

[Anonymous]

I would follow up on some of the lower cost birth options, but also make sure you are familiar with the medicaid requirements-even if you don't think you will need to go that route.

I had normal pregnancy, was being seen by midwives, until I developed severe preeclampsia (I have no risk factors for PE). Two weeks in the hospital and a very complicated c-section later, I think the un-negotiated rate for all that was around $100K, but it may have been more. If I had not had insurance, I would have done everything possible to make sure I met the medicaid requirements.

I know I'm an outlier, and I hope that you have a healthy and cheap pregnancy, but it is always good to have a backup plan.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I just found out I'm pregnant with my second - a huge surprise. I've been laid off and am uninsured. Not the most choice situation. Has anyone gone thru pregnancy uninsured? And if so, how much did you have to pay for care and delivery?

I used Birthcare in Alexandria, and the entire bill for pregnancy, birth, and post partum was $3900. They are absolutely wonderful. There are other great midwifery options in the area who might charge less or be willing to arrange an extended payment plan. Good luck.

Totally agree with this^^^. With my first, we birthed with the Family Health and Birth Center in DC -- it's a similar model to Birthcare, though the center has a more urban feel as it's in the middle of NE DC. We had insurance, but went over all the costs w/ the billing department before the birth b/c that's their protocol, and the cost was somewhere between $3500 and 4000. They have excellent midwives there, and all the support staff was wonderful, too. I would recommend checking them out if you're open to a midwife-assisted birth (at a much lower cost). GL.

PP again, I forgot to mention, FHBC also has payment/installment plans; and the amount I quoted was for everything (prenatal care, labor, delivery, post partum care) except for meds if you need them. And, many of their patients get assistance (Medicaid, WIC, etc.). I agree w/ the PPs' suggestions to look into those options unless you know you're disqualified from them by virtue of a partner's income.

See I was delivered by a FHBC midwife and a supervising OB at WHC and it was 14K, now insurance did cover about 10K. So I don't get my explanation of benefits from CFBCBS of DC when I compare it to the figures you quote. Maybe we got taken for a ride, or I should have been the one in charge of finances for the L & D.

[Anonymous]

I'm sure that the low FHBC rate was for a birth center birth, not a hospital birth. For my FHBC hospital birth, the midwife charged around $7k; WHC charged thousands more for the hospital stay.

I'm confused by the reference to a supervising OB--the only OB contact I had was a consult on the appropriateness of a vbac.

[Anonymous]

22:28 here. I should have checked records before posting $ figures. For my FHBC hospital birth, the midwife charged $3k; WHC charged $7k for l&d nurse, labs, room.

[Anonymous]

My amazing homebirth--including prenatal and postnatal visits--were $3500.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Get a midwife and give birth at home. If your first delivery wasn't eventful and you had to health scares then that is the cheapest route. Cost about $3000

I agree with this completely! The ~$3000 the midwife would charge to deliver your baby in your own home would include all prenatal care, the deliver...in the comfort of your own home...and 6 wks postpartum care. Many will offer a discount if paid in cash before a certain point...like 36 wks or will work with you on financing if you can't do that option. Much more flexible than a hospital. The things a midwife's charge wouldn't cover are ultra sounds, lab tests if you need/want them and that sort of thing. Also you can usually rent a birthing pool through your midwife too so you can labor in water at home. The midwife will set it up and take it down. They also do all the clean up after the birth while you sleep. It's seriously the way to go...whether you have insurance or not. Another alternative is to look into a birthing center. Cheaper than the hospital, but more costly than a home birth.

[Anonymous]

our child was born prematurely and spent 4 weeks in the NICU which was very expensive. I had preeclampsia as well and the total cost was well above 100k.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I just found out I'm pregnant with my second - a huge surprise. I've been laid off and am uninsured. Not the most choice situation. Has anyone gone thru pregnancy uninsured? And if so, how much did you have to pay for care and delivery?

I used Birthcare in Alexandria, and the entire bill for pregnancy, birth, and post partum was $3900. They are absolutely wonderful. There are other great midwifery options in the area who might charge less or be willing to arrange an extended payment plan. Good luck.

Totally agree with this^^^. With my first, we birthed with the Family Health and Birth Center in DC -- it's a similar model to Birthcare, though the center has a more urban feel as it's in the middle of NE DC. We had insurance, but went over all the costs w/ the billing department before the birth b/c that's their protocol, and the cost was somewhere between $3500 and 4000. They have excellent midwives there, and all the support staff was wonderful, too. I would recommend checking them out if you're open to a midwife-assisted birth (at a much lower cost). GL.

I think Birthcare might cost a bit more these days - I want to say is was ~$5k when I delivered two years ago. Plus you have to pay for a birth assistant, which is around $700 maybe? It's a great option, though, and for sure cheaper than a hospital birth. Definitely look into it and the FHBC in DC! Both might be willing to work with you on payment.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My amazing homebirth--including prenatal and postnatal visits--were $3500.

Yep, this.

And if there's some sort of emergency that brings you to the hospital, you're looking at enormous bills no matter what, but no larger than if you had planned a hospital birth.

Good luck! I hope you and/or the child are eligible for medicaid.