Maternity Card

Since we are self-employed now, we had to get our own health insurance for the family. One thing I noticed among all the insurance plans was the lack of maternity coverage. When you first apply for the insurance, if you plan to become pregnant you have to purchase the "Maternity Rider" in addition to your regular policy. The "Rider" is so expensive per month, you would be better off paying out-of-pocket for your midwife or doctor visits.

Due to the high cost of having a baby, I would recommend trying a service like MaternityCard.com. They help couples with their hospital bills after having a baby. Their service aggressively reprices your hospital bill to come up with a much lower total. Most members' bills were lowered more than 60%.

They also give advice on what to bring with you to the hospital, so for example you won't get charged $32 for a box of tissues! The website was very helpful and informative and I will recommend it to my pregnant friends.