Average hospital costs in the Sacramento area are $7,600-$37,000, plus:
- Doctor’s fee of $2,000-$3,500,
- Pediatrician fee,
- Anesthesiologist fee if an epidural is used,
- and supplies used are billed separately.
Insurance often will cover part of these fees and you will have a 10%-50% co-payment with a deductible of $500-$5,000, depending on your plan. If a Cesarean delivery occurs, the cost goes to an average of $10,000-$50,000. C-sections occur an average of 33%-50% of the time in a hospital planned birth compared with 2%-8% in a planned home birth that transfers to a hospital.
For more, read the UC San Francisco article How much does it cost to have a baby in a hospital? (UniversityOfCalifornia.edu).
Sacramento and surrounding area midwifery care averages $4,500-$5,200. This fee covers all the care for mom and baby from beginning through the six week post partum period. Some PPO insurance companies will pay partial coverage for midwifery care and home birth. You can talk to the midwives you interview with about this option.