It makes it hard to defend the U.S. Healthcare system when it constantly provides us with examples of issues that demonstrate how out of control it has become. At Rising, we rectify these issues every day and here’s one that hits home, particularly for parents.

There is a picture now circulating of a fee charged to a mother for holding her child after birth. “Skin to Skin after C-Section” is what the hospital called it, and apparently it cost them $39.35 to provide.

The article’s author states that the mother holding her baby after a C-Section requires a second labor and delivery nurse to come into the room to ensure the baby’s safety. This could be a hospital regulation or a federal regulation, but it makes no sense to me personally. If there is already a nurse present who no longer has to hold the child, I cannot see how (other than mindless bureaucracy) it would require adding another nurse to the room.

Regardless, for thousands of years, mothers have figured out a way to hold their children after birth – for free. Now, it’s a service that requires two medical professionals and a bill charge.