Chinese births in U.S. hospitals?

**NICU Guy, BSN, RN** · Jan 12, 2017

I just watched an episode of a reality show on US Border security. A chinese woman flew to the US to give birth at a birthing center. She paid $30,000 for a month stay to give birth in the US.

Plumrose15153, LPN · Jan 12, 2017

Is that a lot or a little? & Why?

RiskManager · Jan 12, 2017

I have chatted with my risk management colleagues in southern California hospitals about this. They tell me this is a real thing, and the Feds periodically bust these facilities/groups that are doing this. It is being done to get US citizenship for the child so the child can serve as an anchor baby. Many of these women paid tens of thousands of dollars to come to the US to do this; they are coached to plead poverty and no assets at the hospitals, so welfare ends up paying for the care and delivery.

Feds raid alleged Chinese 'maternity tourism' operations in California - LA Times

Asian 'anchor babies': Wealthy Chinese come to Southern California to give birth - LA Times

Why birth tourism from China persists even as U.S. officials crack down - LA Times

amoLucia · Jan 12, 2017

I just watched an episode of a reality show on US Border security. A chinese woman flew to the US to give birth at a birthing center. She paid $30,000 for a month stay to give birth in the US.

For those babies born in the USA, they are now US citizens. Is this some way to keep mothers in the US? Maybe.

Doesn't China have a limit on the number of children a couple can produce? And I would be curious as to the sex of these babies. More girls than boys? Males are still preferred worldwide.

China is still a politically repressed country for whom emigration is probably frowned upon, so I wonder if this might be contributing to this trend of anchoring babies. Might not those Chinese mothers be from SES classes that could have the financial resources to pay for the US trip?

A lot of Mexican immigrants try illegal border crossings to ensure US citizenship for their babies. Cubans have tried it too.

For all its problems, the US is still the land of opportunity for so many seeking that opportunity. In 1883, Emma Lazarus wrote a poem for our Statue of Liberty that spoke of taking in the tired, the poor, the huddled masses and the wretched refuse. Without opening a political can of worms, I hope our doors stay open.

KatieMI, BSN, MSN, RN · Jan 12, 2017

I know about multiple agencies in Miami, LA and NYC which advertize births in US hospitals for Russian women. The whole thing costs around $25000 in case of uncomplicated L&D. The reasons for that are 1) lower risk of labor (RF maternal mortality is officially 25/100000; it doesn't look much more impressive than US data overall, 23/100000, but US number is heavily driven by population subsets which are generally in poorer health, underserved, have higher incidence of drug abuse, cardiac disease, diabetes, HTN, morbid obesity, etc; some rather common conditions like placenta previa are virtually death sentences for mother, child or both in Russia outside of leading medical centers, which are few and very far between; better techniques of obstetric care, which decrease risks for mother and baby; wide usage and acceptance of anesthesia in labor; better customer service; and, lastly, automatic US citizenship for the child (lastly - because the child has to reach the age of 21 before using it and then sponsorship for parents may take another 5 to 10 years).

I easily can imagine that many well-to-do Chinese families may have very similar considerations in mind. Therefore, there will be demand, and then services will come to satisfy it.

KatieMI, BSN, MSN, RN · Jan 12, 2017

For those babies born in the USA, they are now US citizens. Is this some way to keep mothers in the US? Maybe.
Doesn't China have a limit on the number of children a couple can produce? And I would be curious as to the sex of these babies. More girls than boys? Males are still preferred worldwide.
China is still a politically repressed country for whom emigration is probably frowned upon, so I wonder if this might be contributing to this trend of anchoring babies. Might not those Chinese mothers be from SES classes that could have the financial resources to pay for the US trip?
A lot of Mexican immigrants try illegal border crossings to ensure US citizenship for their babies. Cubans have tried it too.
For all its problems, the US is still the land of opportunity for so many seeking that opportunity. In 1883, Emma Lazarus wrote a poem for our Statue of Liberty that spoke of taking in the tired, the poor, the huddled masses and the wretched refuse. Without opening a political can of worms, I hope our doors stay open.

There are ways to keep mothers here, but they are either potentially beneficial for the US (H1, F1, J1 - all for current and future high level specialists), or take a whole lot of money (which, in turn, are invested in US economy this way or another) and planning. And, please, immigration in China is seen as natural as cup of green tea for the last 100+ years. Whoever really wants to do so, can leave at any moment. Chinese, being damn practical nation as a whole, care about staying Chinese, not about what color their passpors are or where they happen to live.

Taiwan grabs money like crazy from medical tourism, including more than enough of them coming from US citizens who come for things like plastics, rehab and joint replacements. Medical high tech and advanced research are thriving there due to purposeful absense of bureucratic regulations (i.e. if a molecular genetic lab needs melanoma samples, everything they like that was cut off in any OR can be just taken in and used, without any patient's consent, enrollment, etc., etc.). I wonder why USA canot do the same.

Sour Lemon · Jan 12, 2017

I have chatted with my risk management colleagues in southern California hospitals about this. They tell me this is a real thing, and the Feds periodically bust these facilities/groups that are doing this. It is being done to get US citizenship for the child so the child can serve as an anchor baby. Many of these women paid tens of thousands of dollars to come to the US to do this; they are coached to plead poverty and no assets at the hospitals, so welfare ends up paying for the care and delivery.
Feds raid alleged Chinese 'maternity tourism' operations in California - LA Times
Asian 'anchor babies': Wealthy Chinese come to Southern California to give birth - LA Times
Why birth tourism from China persists even as U.S. officials crack down - LA Times

I had my baby in a Southern California hospital with an ocean-view room. A nurse there told me that she sees a lot of Chinese patients there just to give birth. She also said they're typically well-mannered and pay their hospital bills in cash before preparing to return to China.

I'm not sure what they're up to, but these are certainly not the typical babies one thinks of when they hear the term "anchor baby". They're wealthy people for the most part with no intent to scrounge up benefits.

Silverdragon102, BSN · Jan 12, 2017

The child may be a US citizen but until aged 21 can not sponsor parent

dishes, BSN, RN · Jan 12, 2017

The child may be a US citizen but until aged 21 can not sponsor parent

The women who are having the babies in the US are wealthy and are doing it to circumvent immigration. The plan is for the child with the US citizenship to return to the US and attend university/college, graduate and sponsor their parents.

Fiona59 · Jan 12, 2017

The women who are having the babies in the US are wealthy and are doing it to circumvent immigration. The plan is for the child with the US citizenship to return to the US and attend university/college, graduate and sponsor their parents.

It's been happening in British Columbia since the 1980s.

Wealthy and not so wealthy women would arrive from Hong Kong to give birth prior to the return of the colony to China. Some would return every 18 months or so to have another Canadian citizen in the family.

Recently there was a series of reports of birthing home being run in Richmond a suburb of Vancouver.

Where there is money, there is a way. It's long term planning in the extreme.

Silverdragon102, BSN · Jan 13, 2017

The women who are having the babies in the US are wealthy and are doing it to circumvent immigration. The plan is for the child with the US citizenship to return to the US and attend university/college, graduate and sponsor their parents.

This probably happens in a few countries, seen it happen in the U.K years ago