Please help us with our licensing efforts!

A bill to license Certified Professional Midwives in Michigan will soon be reintroduced in the state legislature. When that happens, you can help! In the meantime:

QUICK HISTORY
In Michigan, non-nurse (mostly home birth) midwifery is not licensed, specifically legalized, or regulated in any way. As a result, we suffer:
• Potential loss of midwives to charges of practicing medicine without a license
• Less access to professionals for consumers interested in home birth
• Difficulty obtaining medical consults and the safest transfers possible
• Problems obtaining private insurance and Medicaid coverage – or outright bans
Bills to license midwives were introduced in the past two legislative sessions, but made no progress. With the start of a new two-year session last month, it is time for a licensure bill re-introduction. Circumstances suggest the bills’ chances are better this time.

WHAT HAPPENS NEXT?
Michigan’s Coalition to License Certified Professional Midwives is promoting this bill, as is FoMM, one of its member organizations. We ask for your crucial support as consumers. We believe that legal, licensed direct-entry midwifery will be a benefit to all of us. We will send updates and ask you to make your voices heard at important times as the bill makes its way through the legislative process. We need your support to do this work!

WHAT CAN YOU DO NOW?
• Make sure you can identify your state representative (search at http://www.house.mi.gov/mhrpublic/) and senator (search at http://www.senate.michigan.gov/fysbyaddress.html).
• Peruse the House and Senate Health Policy Committee membership lists (http://house.michigan.gov/MHRPublic/CommitteeInfo.aspx… and http://www.senate.michigan.gov/committee/healthpolicy.html). Make a note of any connections you have with any of those members.
• Like to read legislation? The new licensure bill will closely resemble last session’s bill, available at http://legislature.mi.gov/doc.aspx?2013-HB-4749.
• Put aside some $$$ for a donation to help with expenses we accrue in pushing this legislation.
As always, watch this space for updates! ALSO – coming very soon: new FoMM website!
A bill to license Certified Professional Midwives in Michigan will soon be reintroduced in the state legislature. When that happens, you can help! In the meantime:

QUICK HISTORY
In Michigan, non-nurse (mostly home birth) midwifery is not licensed, specifically legalized, or regulated in any way. As a result, we suffer:
• Potential loss of midwives to charges of practicing medicine without a license
• Less access to professionals for consumers interested in home birth
• Difficulty obtaining medical consults and the safest transfers possible
• Problems obtaining private insurance and Medicaid coverage – or outright bans

Bills to license midwives were introduced in the past two legislative sessions, but made no progress. With the start of a new two-year session last month, it is time for a licensure bill re-introduction. Circumstances suggest the bills’ chances are better this time.

WHAT HAPPENS NEXT?
Michigan’s Coalition to License Certified Professional Midwives is promoting this bill, as is FoMM, one of its member organizations. We ask for your crucial support as consumers. We believe that legal, licensed direct-entry midwifery will be a benefit to all of us. We will send updates and ask you to make your voices heard at important times as the bill makes its way through the legislative process. We need your support to do this work!

WHAT CAN YOU DO NOW?
• Make sure you can identify your state representative (search at http://www.house.mi.gov/mhrpublic/) and senator (search at http://www.senate.michigan.gov/fysbyaddress.html).
• Peruse the House and Senate Health Policy Committee membership lists (http://house.michigan.gov/MHRPublic/CommitteeInfo.aspx?comkey=335 and http://www.senate.michigan.gov/committee/healthpolicy.html). Make a note of any connections you have with any of those members.
• Like to read legislation? The new licensure bill will closely resemble last session’s bill, available at http://legislature.mi.gov/doc.aspx?2013-HB-4749.
• Put aside some $$$ for a donation to help with expenses we accrue in pushing this legislation.

Email us if you want to help out!  Thank you.