Nearly half of all births in the United States are financed by Medicaid, according to a Kaiser Family Foundation Medicaid Budget Survey. State governments pay for approximately 48 percent of all births nationwide. Pregnant women who aren’t insured automatically qualify for Medicaid.
In 24 states, taxpayers pick up the tab for more than 50 percent of all births. In eight states, governments pay for 60 percent or more of all births. New Mexico topped the charts, paying for 72 percent of all births.
Kansas and Missouri fared better. Kansas ranked near the bottom at 46th. In the Sunflower State, taxpayers fund 34 percent of all births. Missouri ranked 38th. The Show-Me State state finances about 42 percent of all births.
The states who fund the least percent of births include New Hampshire, which ranked at the bottom; followed by Virginia, Utah, and North Dakota. The states that fund the most births include New Mexico, Arkansas, and Louisiana. Mississippi, Nevada, and Wisconsin tied for funding the fourth largest percentage of births, 64 percent.
The survey asked states to report the share of all births financed over a 12 month period. States reported data from 2010-2016, so the data varies by calendar year and by state and federal fiscal year. Data for Hawaii was not available.