Photo: Getty Images
BOSTON (WBZ NewsRadio) — With inflating prices bearing down across the United States, it turns out new parents in Massachusetts may be paying more than most Americans.
A study from Body Nest, a pregnancy pillow provider, said that the total average cost for childbirth, infant childcare, and rent increases, all for one year, sum to $34,689 in Massachusetts. That number makes the Commonwealth the most expensive state to give birth to and raise a baby in their first year of life.
Body Nest said that they calculated childbirth costs from the weighted average cost of giving birth in each state, according to the Center for Disease Control's report for vaginal and C-section births.
For rent increases, Body Nest said that they averaged the yearly cost increase for someone moving from a one-bedroom apartment into a two-bedroom apartment.
Finally, and most notably, the pillow company said they took the average cost of daycare over the course of a year for each state from the Economic Policy Institute. In that department, Massachusetts soared high above the rest with an average of $20,913 in yearly infant care costs as of 2020. Body Nest said that's more than triple the cost of paying for infant care in the least expensive state, Alabama.
In total, it costs $20,000 more in Massachusetts to have a baby than in Alabama, the report said.
Follow WBZ NewsRadio: Facebook | Twitter | Instagram | iHeartmedia App