I'm trying to estimate our FSA expenses for 2012 and plan on delivering vaginally (even naturally) at Stony Brook.

Our new plan at United Healthcare has a 10% coinsurance rate, and even when I use UHC's cost estimator on their website, it says a vaginal, drug-free delivery is between $8500-$10k but a full C-section is $10-12k. Shouldn't there be more of a difference in price??

I used a midwife (who had a nurse assisting her) last time, was only in L&D for less than two hours, had no episiotomy, no pitocin, no epidural, not even aspirin or Tylenol. Spent one day/night in post-partum and was released 24 hours after DS was born. I question how that is only $2k cheaper than having an OB/surgeon, anesthesiologist, OR nurses/OR time, plus more extensive recovery and longer hospital stay? My midwife's office manager says it's because we all have to pay for the anesthesiologist/OR/nurses to be on-call in case we need them??