It costs $20,000 to give birth in the US, study finds

Being a parent is priceless — but how much does it cost to become one?

A new study revealed that giving birth costs an estimated $20,000 in the US, an astounding number when the median household income is just $67,521.

The Kaiser Family Foundation study used data from the IBM Health Analytics MarketScan Commercial Claims and Encounters Database, which houses health claims from over 2 million women in a two-year span.

According to the information collected, from 2018 to 2020, women aged 15 to 49 who were enrolled in large employer private health plans reported their healthcare costs. The 2,267,200 women — as claimed by the study — contributed to the available data.

Researchers discovered that the women who gave birth, factoring in pregnancy, delivery and post-partum care, incurred an average of $18,865 more in healthcare-associated costs than those who didn’t. While insurance paid on average $16,011, new mothers were left to pay $2,854 out-of-pocket, depending on the method of delivery.

In fact, vaginal deliveries were found to be significantly less costly than cesarean sections, ringing in at $14,768 — with $2,655 out-of-pocket expenses — compared to C-sections at $26,280 — with $3,214 out of pocket. Additionally, women who receive a C-section pay an extra $500 out of pocket for childbirth-related expenses than women who give birth naturally.

Researchers noted the higher cost may be tied to more intensive care needed after a C-section for recovery or complications, adding that their calculations did not take into account fertility services that often aren’t covered by insurance.

When compared to the average household income, the cost of childbirth and related expenses are seemingly unaffordable. One-third of multi-person households and half of single-person households do not have the “liquid assets” necessary to cover out-of-pocket medical expenses related to pregnancy.

The study comes after new data released in May saw a jump in childbirths in the US for the first time in 7 years. Coupled with the incredible cost of living, childbirth seems unaffordable — not to mention the price of raising a kid to adulthood.

While the Kaiser Family Foundation study stops at childbirth, the total cost of raising a child from infancy to adulthood is daunting, especially when inflation hits a whopping 9.1% and American families see a $500 increase in monthly expenses.

According to the US Department of Agriculture, raising a child in a middle-income, married couple household until the age of 17 rings in at $233,610, which doesn’t cover the price of a college education. Housing, food and education top the list of biggest child-related expenses, according to the report.

But, because of inflation, that 2015 figure really equates to $286,000 in 2022.