Health Insurance

Insurance & Giving Birth: You Need To Know

Insurance can help cover most delivery costs, but you can still face high bills for hospitalization and other medical services.
Even with insurance, the average original cost of childbirth is between $2,700 and $3,200, depending on whether you need a C-section, according to a recent Kaiser Family Foundation study. Several factors can affect the cost of childbirth, from where you live to the provider you choose. Learn more about the role of insurance in childbirth and how you can reduce costs

Insurance plan features to consider when giving birth

In some cases, another insurance policy may provide better coverage for childbirth. If you have the opportunity to change your plans before delivery, consider these key factors:

  • Is the provider you want to use included in a new plan on the web
  • Deductible amounts
  • Maximum out-of-pocket expenses, especially if you have a high-risk pregnancy
  • Coverage for one-time expenses in a birth plan, such as B. Midwife or birth center

4 Important Insurance Conditions

Health insurance plans are usually health maintenance organizations (HMOs) or preferred provider organizations (PPOs). Coverage may vary depending on your plan type and other factors. Understanding the terms below can help you review plan details and make decisions that can save you money.
In-Network: Your health insurance company designates a network of service providers including doctors, specialists, laboratories, and hospitals as in-network. You get more coverage from these providers, so they cost you less. Check directly with your insurance company to see if the provider you’re looking at is in-network.
Out-of-network: Any provider not marked as in-network is considered out-of-network, and their service costs are much higher. If you have an HMO plan, offline visits to providers outside of emergencies may not be covered at all. Your specific plan will indicate the percentage or rate you expect to have to pay to see an out-of-network provider.


Deductible: Your insurance deductible is the amount you pay before the year’s coverage begins. Most plans have separate in-network and out-of-network deductibles, as well as individual or household deductibles. If you have children, you will most likely pay at least your medical deductible for the year.
Deductible Cap: After you reach your deductible, your insurance will cover a fixed percentage or rate of services and you will receive the balance up to your deductible cap. Similar to deductibles, most plans have an in-network maximum and an out-of-network maximum, as well as an individual maximum and a family maximum.

If your insurance company denies coverage for services you deem medically unnecessary, you may have to pay more than the maximum deductible. For example, your insurance company may deny coverage for anti-nausea medications that are not covered by your policy. In these cases, you can appeal the decision and try to get the service or drug

When is the best time to get pregnant to maximize my insurance coverage?

December is the ideal month to conceive when it comes to maximizing insurance coverage. Most prenatal visits don’t start until the sixth to twelfth week of pregnancy. If you conceive in December, you can claim New Year’s benefits and give birth before the end of the year. This allows you to take full advantage of your out-of-pocket expenses for extra coverage.

When is the worst time to get pregnant to maximize my insurance coverage?

Conceiving in March or April could give you a late December to January due date. If you are hospitalized due to complications on December 30 and don’t give birth until January 1 of the following year, you may pay two deductibles for two different years of coverage. You could also face two different maximum deductibles instead of one, doubling your medical bills.

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