A mother in Phoenix delivers by cesarean section. Under A.R.S. 20-1342, what minimum hospital stay must her Arizona accident and health coverage allow?

Why D is correct

A.R.S. 20-1342 sets the cesarean-section minimum at 96 hours — double the 48-hour minimum that applies after a normal vaginal delivery. Arizona maternity benefit provisions must respect both figures, and keying 48 hours for a cesarean stem means the surgical and vaginal thresholds have been swapped.

Why the other options are wrong

• A) Forty-eight hours is the normal vaginal delivery minimum; A.R.S. 20-1342 doubles the floor for cesarean deliveries.
• B) A.R.S. 20-1342 fixes a statutory floor of 96 hours after a cesarean section; physician certification cannot shorten it.
• C) No 90-day confinement requirement exists; the statute speaks in hours, and the cesarean minimum is 96 hours.

Memory hook

Cesarean doubles it: 96 hours.

Why D is correct

A.R.S. 20-1342(B) sets the cesarean-section minimum at 96 hours — hospital stays following a cesarean may not be restricted to less than that period. The statute recognizes the longer recovery a surgical delivery requires compared with the 48-hour floor after a normal vaginal delivery.

Why the other options are wrong

• A) 48 hours is the normal vaginal delivery minimum, not the cesarean minimum.
• B) The statute states an express cesarean minimum, so no-minimum is wrong.
• C) 7 days is the weekly-mode grace period under A.R.S. 20-1347, not a maternity stay.

Memory hook

C-section: four days on the clock.