---
title: Law Needed to Expand Access to Midwives
date: 2023-12-04T18:00:00-05:00
author: OBOS Admin
canonical_url: "https://ourbodiesourselves.org/media-coverage/law-needed-to-expand-access-to-midwives"
section: Media Coverage
---
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[Media Coverage](/media-coverage)# Law Needed to Expand Access to Midwives

By Gene Declercq, Judy Norsigian & Jo-Anna Rorie • CommonWealth • July 19, 2018

> The countries with the best outcomes for moms and babies provide maternity care primarily by midwives. Massachusetts ranks in the bottom half of US states when it comes to utilizing midwifery care in part due to a lack of integration of certified professional midwives in our maternity care system. A recent report from the National Partnership for Women and Families ([Blueprint for Advancing High-Value Maternity Care Through Physiologic Childbearing](https://nationalpartnership.org/report/maternity-blueprint/)) recommends that states recognize certified professional midwives and ensure they meet educational and competency standards that align with those set by the International Confederation of Midwives. This can be accomplished with the passage of the Out-of-Hospital Birth Access and Safety Act (HB 4655) sponsored by Rep. Kay Kahn.

  
Read the complete op ed: [Law Needed to Expand Access to Midwives](https://commonwealthmagazine.org/opinion/law-needed-to-expand-access-to-midwives/)

[Read the full article ](http://commonwealthmagazine.org/opinion/law-needed-to-expand-access-to-midwives/)

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