Watch: Their Child Died. The Medical Payments Haunted Them.

By Micah Williams On Sep 30, 2022

September 30, 2022

Born with a congenital heart defect and other medical issues, Sterling Raspe lived just eight months. In that time, she needed dozens of medical procedures and often required round-the-clock care in the neonatal intensive care unit. At one point, her parents were told they owed $2.5 million for her care. “It’s an offensive amount of money,” said Sterling’s father, Kingsley Raspe, in this KHN video produced by Hannah Norman and reported by Lauren Weber. More than <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/nvss/vsrr/natality-dashboard.htm">300,000 U.S. families</a> have infants who require advanced medical attention in NICUs every year. The services are delivered and, in keeping with the U.S. health care system, billing follows. But for <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/reproductivehealth/maternalinfanthealth/infantmortality.htm">the smaller fraction of families</a> whose children die, the burden can be too much to bear. For more about the Raspe family and others in similar circumstances, read “<a href="https://khn.org/news/article/cruelest-bills-baby-death-hospitals-millions-dollars/">The Cruelest Bills</a>.”