How Expensive Is Child Birth?

Two co-workers and I have all had a child within the past year. All of the deliveries went differently, there were different insurance plans used, and we were in different hospitals but all in the same metro area. What was the range of expenses we saw?

Birth 1

• scheduled induction for right before the due date. 
• issues during delivery that required an emergency c-section and four days in the NICU 
• delivery and post-delivery treatment happened at hospital 1
• mother was covered by her insurance; baby was covered by both parents' insurances.

Total out-of-pocket cost - $3828

Birth 2

• scheduled induction for a few days before the due date
• zero issues during delivery so no c-section, no NICU, and a short hospital stay for the mother
• delivery and post-delivery treatment happened at hospital 2
• mother was covered by her insurance; baby was covered by dad's insurance

Total out-of-pocket cost - $5753

Birth 3

• wait until mother went into labor to go to the hospital
• issues during delivery (>24 hour labor) that required an emergency c-section but no NICU
• delivery and post-delivery treatment happened at hospital 1
• unclear which insurance covered who (wrongly billed and currently being sorted out)

Total out-of-pocket cost - $2484

Summary

The healthcare system in the US is weird. Birth 2 went the smoothest and resulted in the highest cost. The insurance provider for birth 1 is the same as birth 2, but the mothers work for different agencies so they have slightly different plans (both are public employees).