Massachusetts and New Hampshire Rank as Best States to Have a Baby

Having a baby is life-changing, no new news there. That is obvious.

I learned recently, since I do not have kids yet, that having a baby is also really expensive.

Yes, babies are expensive, but HAVING the baby is very costly.

According to a WalletHub article, "the average conventional delivery in the U.S. costs over $2,600 with insurance, and without insurance, it could cost nearly $15,000."

With varying state legislation across the United States regarding funding, parental time off, child care, etc., not all states are created equal when it comes to bringing a baby into the world.

In Layman's terms, some states are better and more supportive when bringing a baby into the world, and some states STINK to have a baby in.

"WalletHub compared the 50 states and the District of Columbia across 31 key measures of cost and health care accessibility, as well as baby- and family-friendliness," according to a WalletHub article. "Our data set ranges from hospital conventional-delivery charges to annual average infant-care costs to pediatricians per capita."

Massachusetts CRUSHED this study, and was ranked the #1 state to have a baby in. It was the #1 state in "family-friendliness," #2 in "health care," and #4 in "baby-friendliness."

New Hampshire was not far off, claiming the #6 spot. Below are some of New Hampshire's highlights.

Having a Baby in New Hampshire (1=Best; 25=Avg.):

• 2^nd – Hospital Cesarean-Delivery Charges
• 1^st – Hospital Conventional-Delivery Charges
• 9^th – Infant Mortality Rate
• 7^th – Rate of Low Birth-Weight
• 15^th – Midwives & OB-GYNs per Capita
• 13^th – Pediatricians & Family Medicine Physicians per Capita
• 15^th – Child-Care Centers per Capita
• 27^th – Parental-Leave Policy Score