Increasing Access to Midwifery Care

Last revised: April 29, 2026

The midwifery model of care is based on the assumption that most pregnancies, labors, and births are normal biological processes that result in healthy outcomes for both mothers and babies. It focuses on maximizing the health and well-being of a woman and her baby, identifying and managing medical problems early on, and attending to the emotional, social, and spiritual aspects of pregnancy and birth. Despite substantial research showing the advantages of the midwifery model of care, midwives attend fewer than 10% of births in the U.S.

Our Bodies Ourselves has long advocated for greater access to midwifery care in all birth settings. We've done much of our midwifery advocacy work since 2022 in collaboration with the Bay State Birth Coalition. Dedicated organizing led to passage of the "Momnibus" Bill (An Act promoting access to midwifery care and out-of-hospital birth options, H.4999) in Massachusetts in August 2024. The new law allows certified professional midwives (CPMs) to obtain licenses, establishes a state board of midwifery, revises outdated state birth center regulations, and requires MassHealth to cover CPM care.

We hope to build on this progress with "An Act promoting and enhancing the sustainability of birth centers and the midwifery workforce" (SD.1596/HD.2842). Among its provisions, this bill would fund midwifery education and ensure that insurance set sustainable reimbursement rates for midwives and birthing centers.

New England Public media reports that,

The 2024 maternal health law removed regulatory barriers to opening freestanding birth centers and created a pathway for certified professional midwives to become licensed. But low reimbursement rates for care offered in birth centers are threatening the profitability of the facility model, said Ginny Miller, owner and clinical director at Seven Sisters. The dynamic is unfolding even as the state looks to boost access to alternative care options and alleviate poor maternal health outcomes for people of color.

We continue to support the campaign for the new Neighborhood Birth Center to become Boston’s first freestanding birth center. This Center will provide a much-needed option and will address racial inequities in birth outcomes (now a widely recognized problem throughout the country).

There is an acute need to have good out-of-hospital birthing options for those experiencing normal pregnancies. Massachusetts once had several neighborhood and hospital-based birth centers, but midwife-owned Seven Sisters Midwifery Center in Western Massachusetts is the only one that remains operational. OBOS and other activists have been working hard to ensure the re-opening of the Cambridge Birth Center. The CBC now has renovated birthing rooms and plans to reopen in July 2026 after six years of closure.

View letters and statements here from Our Bodies Ourselves and other childbirth advocates supporting out-of-hospital birth centers and the licensure of CPMs.