WalletHub: R.I. 25th best state to have a baby

RHODE ISLAND falls in the middle of the pack when it comes to the best states to have a baby, ranking 25th, according to WalletHub. / COURTESY WALLETHUB
RHODE ISLAND falls in the middle of the pack when it comes to the best states to have a baby, ranking 25th, according to WalletHub. / COURTESY WALLETHUB

PROVIDENCE – Rhode Island falls in the middle of the pack when it comes to the best states to have a baby, ranking 25th, according to the latest study from WalletHub.
Rhode Island also ranked the lowest out of all the New England states.
The personal finance website looked at all 50 states and the District of Columbia to come up with its findings, studying conventional delivery and cesarean delivery charges, average annual infant care costs, cost of living, average annual wage of nurses and pediatricians, rate of preterm births, number of child care centers per 100,000 residents and rate of low birth weight, among other factors.
Rhode Island scored high in the health care subcategory, coming in 11th, but ended up on the lower end in the budget subcategory at 42nd. It also ranked 23rd in the baby-friendly environment subcategory.
Rhode Island also was among five states with the highest hospital conventional-delivery charges, WalletHub said.
Vermont ranked as the best state in the country to have a baby and Maine was seventh best. Connecticut just missed the top 10, coming in at 11th. Massachusetts was 12th and New Hampshire, 13th. Mississippi placed last on the list.
The study was done in honor of September being one of the most popular birth months in the U.S. and to help parents gauge baby-planning costs, WalletHub said.
WalletHub cited the International Federation of Health Plans, saying Americans pay the highest birthing costs in the world. The average price tag of conventional delivery at a U.S. hospital is $10,000, and a C-section adds $5,000 to that cost, it said.

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