Hospital Charges Man $40 To Hold His Newborn Baby

Reddit user halfthrottle shared a picture of his bill from Utah Valley Hospital after his wife’s C-section. One particular detail on the bill stood out. It was the amount of $39.35, and it was highlighted for “skin to skin.”

The dad wrote in an Imgur post, “I had to pay $39.35 to hold my baby after he was born.” How does a charge like this make sense when you’re pretty much holding something that belongs to you?

““The nurse let me hold the baby on my wife’s neck/chest. Even borrowed my camera to take a few pictures for us. Everyone involved in the process was great, and we had a positive experience. We just got a chuckle out of seeing that on the bill,” said the new father.

Utah Valley Hospital spokeswoman Janet Frank said in a statement to PIX11 that the additional charge was because there was an additional nurse in the room during the C-section.

“In the case of a C-section, where the bedside caregiver is occupied caring for the mother during surgery, an additional nurse is brought into the OR to allow the infant to remain in the OR suite with the mother,” the statement noted. “This is to ensure both patients remain safe. There is an additional charge associated with bringing an extra caregiver into the OR. The charge is not for holding the baby, but for the additional caregiver needed to maintain the highest levels of patient safety.”