Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Real Reality]

In an apparent crackdown, U.S. authorities have arrested 10 Korean mothers who traveled to the United States to give birth so that their babies would be eligible for American citizenship.
The women were held on visa violations, charged with having come to the country for reasons other than stated on their entry permits.

As thousands of pregnant Korean women sought to go to the United States to give birth, an industry specializing in helping them was spawned in Los Angeles. No official statistics are available, but industry insiders estimated that about 5,000 births by Korean visitors occurred last year, and another 8,000 as of August this year. A two-month trip costs roughly $20,000.
http://joongangdaily.joins.com/200309/20/200309200222462009900090409041.html

[mack the knife]

Why? Are you donating sperm?

[Tiger Beer]

I don't have any kids out there and none on the way..

BUT.. if I did.. you have to go for whatever is most strategic.. for example, I wouldn't mind accidently having whoever becomes my future wife to give birth to a baby in some European country which has that same law..

There is absolutely no advantage whatsoever to having a foreign baby in Korea.

[l'il kim]

There is no European country with the same law. The US, Canada, Australia and New Zealand are pretty much the only countries in the world where you can automatically get a passport by being born there. Almost everywhere else requires either blood, long residency or marriage to a national. Sorry.

[Corporal]

[Gord]

[Corporal]

Um, I didn't fly over from the US. I meant it is cheaper to stay here and have a baby than to go to the States or Canada to do it.

Tiger Beer said there was NO advantage to having a foreign baby in Korea, and in my case, staying here was clearly superior to going home to do it.

[Real Reality]

In Argentina
Costs of publicly provided maternity services
The average cost per hospital day is $115. The average cost of a caesarean section ($526) is five times greater than that of a normal vaginal delivery ($106).
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/entrez/query.fcgi?cmd=Retrieve&db=PubMed&list_uids=12649959&dopt=Abstract

In Uganda, Malawi, and Ghana
The unit cost of vaginal delivery services was $2.71 - $33.90 in Uganda, $10.22 - $24.03 in Malawi, and $7.66 - $14.60 in Ghana. The costs of cesarean section at the public and the mission hospitals were $73.10 and $86.48 respectively in Uganda, $102.38 and $61.39 in Malawi, and $88.83 and $55.60 in Ghana.
http://www.abtassoc.com/reports/2000230338609_35062.pdf

In the U.S.
The cost of a normal vaginal birth for a self-pay patient with a one-day stay ranged from $2,500 to $3,000. If, however, things do not go as you plan and you end up being delivered by cesarean section, then the cost will be significantly higher.

Like hospital charges, provider fees vary greatly by region. Labs fees generally are separate, as are special tests like amniocenteses and sonograms.

If you're in an HMO and choose a provider from their list, then you should pay nothing (or a small co-payment) for the provider and hospital stay. For those of you insured in New York who want to use a midwife, be aware that there is a state law requiring an insurance company (including HMOs) to allow you the option of using a midwife, even if this requires going out of network to do so. Thirty other states also mandate private insurance reimbursement for midwifery care, and medicaid reimbursement is mandatory in all 50 states.

If you have point-of-service insurance, then you usually have to pay about 20 percent of the provider fee, but in most cases the hospital charges will be covered completely.

If you have no insurance coverage for maternity care, but do not qualify for Medicaid, I suggest you call your local or state health department to find out if any special programs exist that might cover your situation. There are many clinics with midwives on staff.
http://www.babycenter.com/expert/pregnancy/childbirth/2413.html

[Gord]

[Corporal]

You're being a 'tard again, Gord.

I wasn't commenting on the original post. I repeat: Tiger Beer said there was no advantage to having a foreign baby in Korea. For me there was. And since to the best of my knowledge you have no personal experience with childbirth, I don't know why you're blabbing on about the inconviences involved, etc.