Having a baby is expensive – nowhere more so than in the United States, where birth costs can run into the thousands of dollars.
But nothing could prepare this particular dad for what he claims was the most unexpected of extra costs: holding his child.
Yup: “skin-to-skin” – the act of holding your baby against your body after birth – is a chargeable part of the service, according to a photograph of a medical bill he posted on Reddit.
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The man added: “During the C-section the nurse asked my wife if she would like to do skin to skin after the baby was born. Which of course anyone would say yes to. We just noticed it in the bill today and had a laugh. All these internet points I’ve been showered with make me feel better about the $40. This could be my proudest moment as a father.
“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.”
Another user offered an explanation for the supposed charge, saying: “As a labour and delivery nurse, I can kind of explain this. I didn’t know that hospitals charged for it, but doing ‘skin to skin’ in the operating room requires an additional staff member to be present just to watch the baby.
“We used to take all babies to the nursery once the NICU team made sure everything was okay. “Skin to skin” in the OR (operating room) is a relatively new thing and requires a second Labour and Delivery RN to come in to the OR and make sure the baby is safe.”