ANNAPOLIS, Md. — Having a child is expensive.
On average, labor and delivery cost an average of $2,850 after insurance.
That's why Senators Justin Ready and Ariana Kelly want to require insurance companies to cover everything.
"I thought if we could do this, it would really send a strong message about the importance we place on having children and having that early childhood development that we know is so important," said Ready, a Republican from Carroll and Frederick counties.
Maryland already requires some other reproductive services to be fully covered, like abortions and vasectomies.
"So it was apparent to me that there [were] some inequalities in terms of labor and delivery costs," said Senator Kelly, a Democrat from Montgomery County.
The bills for having a kid don't stop with labor and delivery, but the senators feel starting out with a few thousand dollars in savings is a big boost for Maryland families.
"When you're talking about having a baby, you're talking about significant increased costs no matter what. You have costs for taking time off work. You have all the things that come with a baby, diapers, child care. The last thing we need is to have extraordinary health care bills on top of that," said Kelly.
"If you have young children that start off in early life getting what they need, and families being able to take the time they need to really get those kids off to a great start, you're going to have healthier people long term," said Ready.
At the bill's hearing last week, no one testified against it.
If it passes the Senate and House, it would go into effect at the start of next year.
