Chantal Panozzo
At the time, I had taken this level of care for granted. I had no idea how it compared to what new mothers experience in the US. But now I know: No time to heal or learn to breastfeed in a hospital, hardly any follow-up care for the newborn or herself, no legally mandated paid leave, and stress-inducing, opaque costs surrounding delivery and beyond.
My US, non-medicated birth cost my insurer over $9,000 — more than three times the Swiss price for much less care — but I was “lucky.” The average US birth costs insurers $18,865, with out-of-pocket payments for women enrolled in large group plans totaling $2,854, according to the Peterson-KFF Health System Tracker. It’s a staggering price to pay by world standards.
The system in the US felt broken
Five years later, I haven’t been able to shed the feeling that something is wrong with the care in my own country. That we all deserve better. Especially considering we are paying so much more for so much less.
My experience is only mine, but statistics also show that there are problems behind the state of care in America. In June, the Commonwealth Fund reported that more women in the US are dying of pregnancy-related complications than in any other developed country. In 2022, the rate for infant mortality in the US also increased, per Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
I was left feeling that healthcare doesn’t have to be like this — I know from experience that in other wealthy countries, it isn’t.
Chantal Panozzo is writing a book about what she wishes she’d known about American life before giving up her Swiss residency permit.
Got a personal essay about culture shock or relocating a family that you want to share? Get in touch with the editor: akarplus@businessinsider.com.