High-Profit Maternity Wards Are Keeping Hospital Doors Open

By Hillary Crosley Coker | March 10, 2014 | 2:20pm

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How much does it cost to have a baby? Enough to keep failing New York City hospitals afloat, according to a new report.

“A couple of years ago, obstetrics services were closing down,” said Dr. Robert Kelly, president of New York-Presbyterian Hospital. “Everyone was losing a lot, and we were, too.”

Now higher insurance payments and the City’s Medicaid program have turned the tables. In addition, there has been a rise in high-risk mothers and fragile newborns, which require more care and in turn more billings, reports Crain’s New York.

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“We are seeing a population of women who are older, who tend to have more high-risk deliveries and need more complicated care,” said Ms. Sellman.

Maternal obesity is another factor in high-risk pregnancies. In New York City, 40 percent of new mothers were obese and more than half of them were black or Hispanic.

Ultimately, hospital maternity payments on average increased from $5,600 to $7,400 from 2009 to 2013, respectively. Caesareans, or c-sections, accounted for about one third of New York city births two years ago and the cost has risen to $14,100. From 2009 to 2013, general care for a new baby jumped from $2,100 to $2,800 and premature babies’ care rose from $35,800 to $41,600.

Kids aren’t ever cheap, but these costs make you really realize how far a free pack of birth control can go.

Image via Getty.