The cost of providing hospital care for premature babies in Hamilton County tops $93 million a year, an amount born largely by taxpayers, insurance companies or self-insured businesses. More than 1,500 infants are born prematurely in Hamilton County every year, according to an economic impact report that will be made public later this week by Cradle Cincinnati, a nonprofit based at Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center. The cost of the extra care provided can range from $19,600 for moderate or late preterm births to $454,500 for a baby born extremely prematurely. By comparison, hospital care for newborns carried to full term costs an average of less than $3,400.
