If you're planning to give birth in the United States, be prepared to pay more than mothers-to-be in many other developed nations.

The cost of giving birth in the United States has tripled since 1996, and the nation's 4 million births each year now cost about $50 billion, according to The New York Times. The average price charged for pregnancy and newborn care was $30,000 for vaginal delivery and $50,000 for a cesarean section.

In countries such as Switzerland, Norway and France, the average cost of a vaginal birth is around $4,000, the Times reported.

"It's not primarily that we get a different bundle of services when we have a baby," Gerard Anderson, an economist at the Johns Hopkins School of Public Health who studies international health costs, told the Times. "It's that we pay individually for each service and pay more for the services we receive."

http://news.msn.com/us/why-does-it-cost-more-to-give-birth-in-the-us

MONTEBELLO (CBSLA.com) — A man walked into his Wells Fargo Friday with a mask on, but he was no robber. Far from it.

Joe Jaramillo, a cancer patient, had undergone chemotherapy the day before. The surgical mask was to fight germs.

“I felt so embarrassed and humiliated,” said Jaramillo, asked how he felt when he was surrounded by police.

He spoke to KCAL9?s Cristy Fajardo about being confused for a wanted bank robber.

Just doing the mundane tasks, like going to the bank, are a blessing for Jaramillo, 57, and fighting lymphoma.

http://losangeles.cbslocal.com/2013/06/30/masked-cancer-patient-walks-into-a-bank-and-mistaken-for-wanted-robber/

U.S. informant Edward Snowden received a mention in an unlike place: a German lingerie ad.

The execution, above, is a pretty juvenile play on the word "uncover." If you're looking for clever commentary on PRISM or the NSA, you'll have to look elsewhere. (Blush Lingerie's Facebook Page goes a bit further, adding: "Dear Edward, take good care! We are with you!&quot

Give the lingerie line some credit, though. In an age in which brands often take part in the ongoing social media conversation, Blush is one of the few to comment one of the year's biggest stories. Denny's took a similarly sophomoric approach to the news.

http://mashable.com/2013/07/01/edward-snowden-lingerie-ad/

Two drag queen beauty pageant rivals have brawled following an apparent judging error.

The winner of the Miss Gay San Juan beauty contest in Peru was grappled to the floor by the runner-up moments after being presented with the crown.

As screams are heard in the background from the audience in Tarapoto, the high heel-wearing contestants are sprawled across the floor as they grab each other by their wigs.

The fight, captured on film, is thought to have been sparked by judges naming the wrong winner, or at least that’s what the runner-up believed, anyway.

http://metro.co.uk/2013/06/28/drag-queen-beauty-pageant-hopefuls-in-full-on-brawl-3861058/

Omaha police arrested a man for, among other things, lewd conduct after he came to them claiming to have witnessed a murder.

According to a police report, 53-year-old Darrell Moore went to Central Police Headquarters downtown on Wednesday. He told the front desk officer that he just witnessed a murder. He then proceeded to take off his pants.

The officers told him to keep his pants on but he refused. Moore then allegedly proceeded to gratify himself sexually in front of the officers. When a police sergeant approached the man, Moore allegedly spit toward him. He also allegedly tried hitting an officer, who blocked his attempt.

http://www.wowt.com/home/headlines/Mans-Claim-to-Witness-Murder-Doesnt-Stand-Up-213319531.html

A New York couple is suing their dog-sitter, claiming she won’t give back their champion Samoyed named Polar Mist You Gotta Believe and had the animal neutered, ruining his value.

Cecile and Victor Stanton, of Jericho, N.Y., filed a lawsuit against Beverly Jeffries of Pasadena, Calif., on June 26 in the Superior Court of Los Angeles County, Calif., claiming she refuses to return their dog. In a contract between the two parties signed in February and included in the lawsuit, the Stantons agreed to give temporary physical custody of the AKC-registered Grand Champion to Jeffries while they retained ownership.

The Stantons bought the dog, which answers to the name Justin, in 2006, according to a certificate issued by the American Kennel Club. When the Stantons asked for Justin to be returned in May, Jeffries refused, the suit states.

In their lawsuit the Stantons maintain that Jeffries neutered Justin without their permission in April. The dog, a stud used for breeding, is worth an estimated $250,000, according to the suit.

http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/headlines/2013/06/champion-dog-allegedly-neutered-kidnapped/

SALT LAKE CITY -- Running with scissors is generally considered a risky endeavor, but one group of Utah residents says running with a gun isn't.

Organizers of the "Run 4 Guns" planned for this fall in Spanish Fork, Utah, are touting the event as the nation's first open carry run.

The group is inviting runners to bring not only their tennis shoes and water bottles, but their gun holsters, as well.

Organizer Macgregor Whiting of Mapleton said the September 5K race, which was first reported by Salt Lake City Weekly, aims to celebrate Second Amendment rights and show that gun owners are responsible, normal people. In addition to the 3.1 mile race, they'll have a half-mile "armed dash."

Proceeds from the event will go toward victims of gun violence, Whiting said.

http://www.heraldextra.com/news/local/south/spanish-fork/utah-gun-rights-group-plans-open-carry-k/article_cd693949-5d3e-5d41-8e68-2e4597a11777.html

THIEVES stole a shed from a Bishop's Cleeve allotment.

The wooden structure at the Nortenham site in Evesham Road, was emptied before being driven away. A concrete post was damaged as the thieves escaped.

Ruth Low, an allotment holder in the village, said: "You can see where the shed is missing in the allotments.

"When we found out about it, we thought it might be a typing error, but when we went down we actually saw the entire shed had been taken.

"We don't have a shed ourselves, we keep most of our equipment at home."

http://www.thisisgloucestershire.co.uk/Shock-shed-snatched-allotment/story-19394460-detail/story.html#axzz2Xe4hkkaA

This would make the Bluth family proud.

A grinning La Guardia Airport worker took a lunchtime joyride in an “Arrested Development”-style stair car — even though the wacky contraption isn’t allowed on city streets.

The driver, a regular at a nearby pizza joint, was spotted cruising in the Southwest Airlines vehicle on 19th Avenue and Hazen Street at 12:30 pm on Saturday.

But just because Michael Bluth rolls in a staircase-on-wheels, doesn’t mean normal people can.

“It is not legal to drive on a public street,” a DMV spokeswoman said.

The vehicle displays a Port Authority license plate marked “A 3537” — which permits driving only on airport premises.

http://www.nypost.com/p/news/local/step_ping_out_KrZzwLmm7yW4pxY6G46tDL

A Mexican grandmother has graduated from primary school at the age of 100.

Manuela Hernandez, who was born in the state of Oaxaca in June 1913, left primary school after just a year to help her poor family with the household chores.

She only resumed her studies last October at the age of 99 at the recommendation of one of her grandchildren.

She has now been handed her diploma at a celebration held in the southern Mexican state.

http://news.sky.com/story/1108636/gran-graduates-from-primary-school-at-100