Home birth & midwifery

Creates licensing and regulation for certified professional midwives. Families should have access to qualified midwives for home birth.

The bill would revise provisions on birth centers and the practice of certified professional midwives at birth centers. Families need access to midwives and birth centers; the description does not say whether this expands or limits them.

The bill would require health insurance plans to cover services from licensed certified professional midwives. Families who choose midwife care should have it covered.

Would regulate the practice of certified and licensed midwives. Similar bills also address freestanding birth centers. CODR is watching how these rules would affect families’ access to home birth and midwives.

The Doula Credentialing & Access Act sets up credentialing and access for doulas and was signed into law in 2025. More birth support options can help families, but credentialing can also add rules, so CODR is watching.

The bill would impose requirements relating to birth in a hospital or freestanding birthing center, require certain insurance coverage, and make other public health changes. Families should keep the freedom to choose where and how to give birth; this mixed bill needs watching.

Establishes the professional practice of community midwifery, covering care for normal pregnancy, childbirth, and postpartum in the home, birth center, or community, and sets license and practice requirements. Families should have access to qualified midwives and the freedom to give birth at home.

Requires health insurance carriers and Medicaid to provide coverage for planned home childbirth. Families should be able to choose home birth without bearing the full cost alone.

Establishes a Midwifery Licensing Act; some versions also modify existing regulation of midwifery. CODR supports licensing paths that expand access to midwives and is watching whether these versions widen or narrow that access.