Woman shares staggering amount of money it cost to keep her newborn baby in hospital for a month

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Woman shares staggering amount of money it cost to keep her newborn baby in hospital for a month

The 25-year-old was slapped with a six-figure bill, that wasn't far off seven figures, after she had an emergency C-section in October

A new mom has been charged 'almost a million dollars' for having a baby that was taken into the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU).

Janice Hernandez gave birth to baby Aliana at the end of October, but her daughter was diagnosed with Prader-Willi syndrome (PWS) - a rare condition affects one in 20,000 newborns, with symptoms including weak muscle tone and a difficulty feeding.

Janice Hernandez explained how she was hit with a hospital bill totalling more than $700,000 after her baby was treated in NICU for just seven weeks (Instagram/Janicehearts)
Janice Hernandez explained how she was hit with a hospital bill totalling more than $700,000 after her baby was treated in NICU for just seven weeks (Instagram/Janicehearts)

It meant that the infant, who was born via an emergency C-section, was taken into NICU where she remained for seven weeks before being discharged.

The 25-year-old mom has shared her disgust with followers on her TikTok account, as she tried to fathom how she was charged almost $750,000.

"I just the bill for my daughter's NICU stay, do you guys want to know how much it is? Do you want to converse, have a conversation about the price? $738,360 freaking dollars. Almost a million dollars," stressed Hernandez, of Leno - a city to the northwest of Nevada just a two-hour drive from California's capital Sacramento.

Baby Aliana was born at the end of October (Instagram/janicehearts)
Baby Aliana was born at the end of October (Instagram/janicehearts)

"Then I decided to take a look through the itemised bill because they sent every single little thing that they charged for and I swear there's things that they didn't do and I swear there's things that they're overcharging for.

"For example, I noticed on the bill that there's a little tiny bit of Aquaphor that they gave me that I actually still have - $25 for a tiny tube of Aquaphor that I thought the nurse was just giving me to be cute and give it for free. No ma'am!"

Before adding: "They made sure to charge for every little tiny thing, damn! Like that's crazy."

The TikTok video has since gone viral online and has been streamed a viewed more than three million times - with those overseas flabbergasted at the shocking price it cost Americans to have a baby if things don't run smoothly.

In a follow-up video, Hernandez, who moved to Nevada from Brooklyn, New York, added: "Imagine if I didn't have insurance. I'd have to pay all of this.

"Here in America, just to breathe costs money and so of course when you step foot into a hospital, they start charging you automatically.

"I just wish that America would get its healthcare system together."

Fortunately, Hernandez was insured, so she didn't have to pay all $738,360, but she would have still been left with a hefty bill.

Featured Image Credit: TikTok/janiceheartss

Topics: News, US News, Health, Parenting