Vaginal Delivery: what it covers and what it costs
What does a Vaginal Delivery cost? Across 38 major U.S. metros, the typical insurer-negotiated price for a Vaginal Delivery (MS-DRG 805 / 806 / 807) runs from about $686 in St. Louis, MO to $30,058 in San Antonio, TX, read from hospitals' own price-transparency files. 6 of those metros have at least one hospital publishing a self-pay cash price. This page explains what the billing code covers, what the quoted price does and does not include, and what actually drives the spread between hospitals. These are price references from public data — not a quote, a bill, or medical or financial advice.
These figures are aggregated from hospitals' public price-transparency files — not a quote, a bill, an insurance benefit determination, or medical advice. Your actual out-of-pocket cost depends on your insurance plan (deductible, copay, coinsurance, network), the exact service and any complications, and which hospital you use. Always confirm price and coverage with the hospital and your insurer before care.
What a Vaginal Delivery price actually covers
A vaginal delivery is billed as an inpatient maternity stay covering labour, delivery and postpartum recovery. It is the most common inpatient hospital admission in the United States.
Code scope. Vaginal delivery WITHOUT sterilization or D&C: MS-DRG 805 (with MCC) / 806 (with CC) / 807 (without CC/MCC). With sterilization/D&C it groups to 796-798 instead.
What is — and isn't — in the price
The hospital charge covers the labour and delivery suite, the mother's room and board and routine postpartum care. The obstetrician's fee is often billed globally across prenatal care and delivery rather than as a delivery line. Epidural anaesthesia is a separate charge from the anaesthesia group, and the newborn is billed as a separate patient.
Why Vaginal Delivery prices differ so much between hospitals
Whether an epidural is used, whether the delivery is assisted with forceps or vacuum, and the length of stay all move the total. As with caesarean delivery, the newborn's charges are the most commonly overlooked component, and they vary enormously if the baby requires more than routine care.
What else usually lands on the bill
Epidural anaesthesia, the newborn's nursery account, lactation consultation and a circumcision if elected are each billed separately. An unplanned conversion to caesarean delivery changes the hospital grouping entirely.
What to ask before you book
Ask whether the price includes epidural anaesthesia and the newborn's nursery care — usually neither — and whether the obstetrician bills globally or per service.
Where the money actually moves
Confirm the anaesthesia group's participation in advance if an epidural is likely, and ask whether the obstetrician bills globally. Requesting the hospital's maternity package rate in writing beforehand works better than negotiating afterwards.
What the Vaginal Delivery numbers show nationally
A Vaginal Delivery costs 43.8× as much in San Antonio as in St. Louis
Across the 38 metros priced here, the typical negotiated rate runs from $686 in St. Louis, MO to $30,058 in San Antonio, TX — the same billing codes, the same procedure, 4284% apart.
The individual hospitals reporting the lowest and highest Vaginal Delivery prices
Lowest: MERCY HOSPITAL SOUTH (St. Louis, MO) at $686; MERCY HOSPITAL JEFFERSON (St. Louis, MO) at $686; MERCY HOSPITAL WASHINGTON (St. Louis, MO) at $686. Highest: PARKLAND HEALTH AND HOSPITAL SYSTEM (Dallas, TX) at $79,467; BRIDGEPOINT CONTINUING CARE HOSPITAL (New Orleans, LA) at $30,276; PAM SPECIALTY HOSPITAL OF NEW BRAUNFELS (San Antonio, TX) at $30,058. These are the figures each hospital published in its own file, not an assessment of the care.
6 of 38 metros have a hospital publishing a self-pay Vaginal Delivery price
Cheapest published cash price: $7,612 (St. Louis). A cash price is what the hospital will accept from someone paying directly; it is not required and many never publish one.
Insurers pay about 65% below the list price for a Vaginal Delivery
Across the 3 metros publishing both, the chargemaster list price is typically 65% above what insurers negotiate. The widest gap is in St. Louis: $12,683 list against $686 negotiated.
How many hospitals actually publish a Vaginal Delivery price
227 hospital price-file entries across 38 metros feed this page. A hospital appears only where its own file lists a rate for MS-DRG 805 / 806 / 807 — where it does not, it is absent from the table rather than filled in with a guess.
Vaginal Delivery price by metro
The typical insurer-negotiated price for a Vaginal Delivery, by metro — lowest first. 6 of these 38 metros have at least one hospital publishing a self-pay cash price; 3 publish a chargemaster list price. Open a metro for its full hospital-by-hospital breakdown and who those hospitals are.
| Metro | Typical negotiated | Range | Cash | Hospitals |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| St. Louis, MO | $686 | $686–$6,626 | $7,612 | 5 |
| Sacramento, CA | $1,885 | $1,885 | — | 3 |
| San Francisco, CA | $1,885 | $1,885–$9,109 | — | 7 |
| Kansas City, MO | $2,717 | $2,717–$9,466 | — | 7 |
| Memphis, TN | $4,498 | $1,650–$7,520 | — | 3 |
| Jacksonville, FL | $5,478 | $5,451–$5,549 | — | 3 |
| Denver, CO | $5,638 | $4,124–$21,418 | — | 10 |
| Louisville/Jefferson County, KY | $5,656 | $5,221–$7,540 | $12,265 | 4 |
| Detroit, MI | $6,143 | $5,385–$7,091 | — | 6 |
| Phoenix, AZ | $6,452 | $5,655–$19,085 | $9,444 | 10 |
| Birmingham, AL | $6,454 | $4,856–$12,538 | — | 9 |
| Milwaukee, WI | $6,461 | $5,469–$8,721 | — | 9 |
| Austin, TX | $7,026 | $4,628–$10,341 | — | 9 |
| Nashville, TN | $7,498 | $6,759–$10,983 | — | 9 |
| Orlando, FL | $7,982 | $1,795–$11,033 | — | 3 |
| Cleveland, OH | $8,149 | $4,847–$9,653 | — | 9 |
| Pittsburgh, PA | $8,248 | $5,817–$11,100 | — | 5 |
| Houston, TX | $8,315 | $6,914–$11,417 | — | 6 |
| San Jose, CA | $8,425 | $1,885–$13,265 | — | 3 |
| Columbus, OH | $8,798 | $1,745–$11,516 | — | 3 |
| Washington, DC | $9,171 | $7,276–$10,692 | — | 7 |
| Indianapolis, IN | $9,567 | $6,943–$11,500 | — | 4 |
| Riverside, CA | $9,584 | $1,489–$15,501 | — | 6 |
| Los Angeles, CA | $9,874 | $1,489–$16,842 | — | 5 |
| Atlanta, GA | $10,035 | $4,979–$20,056 | — | 8 |
| Dallas, TX | $10,341 | $1,837–$79,467 | — | 10 |
| Chicago, IL | $10,426 | $9,092–$11,929 | — | 3 |
| Tampa, FL | $10,900 | $7,783–$12,271 | — | 4 |
| New York, NY | $10,960 | $10,092–$14,952 | $30,513 | 7 |
| Seattle, WA | $11,732 | $2,012–$13,004 | — | 6 |
| Philadelphia, PA | $12,412 | $9,053–$24,978 | $10,102 | 11 |
| Hartford, CT | $13,175 | $6,917–$13,175 | — | 3 |
| Portland, OR | $14,612 | $7,819–$18,824 | — | 7 |
| Miami, FL | $16,375 | $12,000–$21,552 | — | 4 |
| Virginia Beach, VA | $16,560 | $1,854–$18,112 | — | 7 |
| New Orleans, LA | $17,428 | $5,662–$30,276 | — | 4 |
| San Diego, CA | $24,903 | $7,483–$26,563 | $28,819 | 5 |
| San Antonio, TX | $30,058 | $2,585–$30,058 | — | 3 |
Source: hospitals' own machine-readable Standard Charges files, published under the U.S. Hospital Price Transparency rule (45 CFR §180.50). Most recent hospital file in this dataset: July 2026. Prices are references, not quotes or bills, and never medical or financial advice — where a hospital reports no price, nothing is shown rather than a guess.
Frequently asked questions
- How much does a Vaginal Delivery cost?
- Across 38 U.S. metros the typical insurer-negotiated price is about $8,798, ranging from $686 in St. Louis to $30,058 in San Antonio. Every figure is read from a named hospital's own price-transparency file for MS-DRG 805 / 806 / 807.
- Does the price include the doctor's fee?
- The hospital charge covers the labour and delivery suite, the mother's room and board and routine postpartum care. The obstetrician's fee is often billed globally across prenatal care and delivery rather than as a delivery line. Epidural anaesthesia is a separate charge from the anaesthesia group, and the newborn is billed as a separate patient.
- Why do Vaginal Delivery prices differ so much between hospitals?
- Whether an epidural is used, whether the delivery is assisted with forceps or vacuum, and the length of stay all move the total. As with caesarean delivery, the newborn's charges are the most commonly overlooked component, and they vary enormously if the baby requires more than routine care.