Octuplets already costing taxpayers

LOS ANGELES, Feb. 11 (UPI) -- Nadya Suleman, the California woman who gave birth to octuplets, likely will get millions of taxpayer dollars even if she does not seek welfare, records show.

Three of her older six children are already receiving federal payments because of disabilities, the Los Angeles Times reports. Suleman is also getting food stamps for her family.

If some or all of the octuplets are disabled -- likely given the risks of multiple births -- they would also be eligible for disability payments.

Kaiser Permanente Medical Center in Bellflower has applied for Medi-Cal reimbursements for the expense of caring for the octuplets, who were born premature, the Times said, citing sources. The Times estimated that the hospital is already eligible for $153,344 from Medi-Cal, the state's low-income healthcare program, for the infants' care, a bill that would rise to $469,616 if they remain for seven weeks and $805,056 if they stay for 12.

Suleman in an extensive interview with NBC said she was confident that she can raise her 14 children without receiving welfare. She has been receiving disability for a 1999 injury but plans to finish a master's degree in counseling and find a fulltime job.