This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2016, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
New dad Ryan Grassley was so excited to hold his son, Samuel, after his birth last month, it didn't even occur to him that Utah Valley Hospital would charge for it.
So Grassley had to laugh — and post his bill to Reddit — when he saw the $39.35 charge for "skin-to-skin" following his wife Lidia's cesarean section.
"I posted it because I thought it was funny and wanted to give people a laugh," Grassley said. "I wasn't upset; I had actually paid the bill before I even posted it to Reddit."
The bill Grassley posted on Reddit had garnered more than 11,700 comments by Wednesday afternoon, with many people decrying the ridiculousness of the charge.
Janet Frank, hospital spokeswoman, wouldn't comment on this particular bill due to "patient privacy laws" but said there is an additional charge with C-sections "not for holding the baby, but for the additional caregiver needed to maintain the highest levels of patient safety."
"In the case of a C-section, where the bedside caregiver is occupied caring for the mother during the surgery, an additional nurse is brought into the [operating room] to allow the infant to remain in the [operating room] suite with the mother," Frank said.
Grassley jokingly created a GoFundMe page for the charge "because people seemed so outraged" and said any money he receives over the $39.35, he will put toward a vasectomy "because I never want to go through these sleepless new baby nights again."
As of Wednesday afternoon, he had received $75.
"I was surprised when people actually donated," he said.
Twitter: @alexdstuckey