Feb 20, 2019 - Health

The unexpected cost of a failed pregnancy

Sam Baker

Woman getting an ultrasound — A pregnant woman getting an ultrasound. Photo: Brianna Soukup/Portland Press Herald via Getty Images

We know childbirth is wildly expensive in the U.S. The Philadelphia Inquirer has a very depressing related story: The cost of a failed pregnancy can also be unexpectedly large, leaving women or couples to sort through and challenge medical bills on top of an enormous emotional loss.

Details: One woman profiled by the Inquirer, Jodi Laughlin, had to have an emergency C-section. Her baby then lived only 32 minutes, due to a buildup of fluid in her body.

Laughlin’s insurer, Cigna, initially denied coverage for her C-section and for 2 procedures to drain the baby’s excess fluids. Those procedures were instead billed at $16,500 and $26,450. Cigna said none of those 3 procedures were medically necessary.
The family was eventually able to negotiate that down to $4,000. Laughlin’s husband said he initially hid the bills from his wife, given how much she was already going through.
Genetic testing revealed that the same outcome was likely if the Laughlins conceived again, so they turned to fertility treatments — at an out-of-pocket cost of $19,000.

Go deeper: People around the world are waiting longer to have kids

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The unexpected cost of a failed pregnancy

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