If you want to have another baby . . . DON'T DO IT HERE! Thank GOD I have insurance!!!!!!!!!!!!! I cannot believe all those people protesting health care reform!!! Sure, I am not very well informed on the subject, but I can't help but think that most of those people protesting would find it difficult to pay their medical bills without assistance. Even with good insurance, our yearly out of pocket max is a sum that most "average" Americans would find very difficult to deal with on top of all of their other debts. Not to mention, if my care extended over two calender years (like if I got pregnant in August and gave birth the following April) in which case I could pay the max EACH YEAR! Thankfully, we have planned for this. We are financially stable, but it was still a very eye opening experience when I went through all of the bills/insurance stuff today. So, are you curious?
Routine OB care $4231.00 (this is just for my Dr visits)
Hospital stay for C-Section $11,000 (4 days of healthy mom and baby care)
Anesthesiologist $754 (for the Anesthesiologist's time)
Two ultrasounds $500 (approximate)
Other lab tests $244 (approximate - all of those pee tests etc)
Estimated total: $16,729.00
This is estimated - but it will not be less than this. If I hemorrhage or if baby is jaundiced that is more $$. There are probably other services that I was charged for but haven't included. Of course, a regular birth would cost less, but how many people end up with C-sections anyways?
My reply:
Oh yeah...I figured my situation would have cost $50,000 easy (probably upwards of $75,000+). Probably well over. 12 days in the hospital. Baby ICU for 4 days...special care for 6. All the drugs possible, constant monitoring, IV antibiotics and jaundice treatment for the sprout, and a c-section....and initial emergency room visit.
This is all before my 3 ultrasounds, routine bloodwork and tests, midwife appointments, emergency fetal heart monitoring, free prescriptions and dental care, and GP appointments. Then there is all the post natal care I have received; home visits by the midwives and health visitor, immunizations and my 6 week post natal check up.
So is my situation a for or against "socialized" health care? I guess you can see it being eithrer way depending on how you vote on the subject.
All that I know is that when I was getting into that taxi on the way to the hospital my fist thought wasn't "oh shit, I hope everything is ok.." My first thought was "oh shit, I wonder how much this would have cost me in the States?"
Do I really have to sum up this post? I think not.
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