11/08/2024
There is currently a bill in the Michigan house that can impact home birth. This bill is currently waiting to be called to the house health policy committee for public comment and will be called soon. A group of CNM’s and Rep Pothusky have created this bill and are hoping that they can get it passed before the end of the year. The committee hearing was actually scheduled for Thursday of this week, but was canceled at the last minute. A lobbying firm has been working with them for the last 6 months. This is the second time this bill has been introduced since fall 2022. Most of the current LM owned and operated birthing centers are opposed because it will lead to increased costs and regulation, resulting in closures/fewer centers opening in the future. In addition, the bill will limit the LM, CPM scope for breech, twin and post date deliveries in our centers. Rural centers and consumers of midwifery will likely be harmed the most. We are currently reaching out because we need other LM’s and their clients to contact the health policy committee and urge them to vote no on HB5636. I will provide the link to the house health policy reps. Calls are helpful as well as letters from midwives and their clients. We plan to collect all letters and turn them in as public testimony when the committee meets for public testimony. They can be emailed to jenny@itsyourbirth.com. We are asking clients to include how their midwives have positively impacted them, and how Michigan consumers of midwifery would suffer should a bill pass due to closures and fewer new centers opening. We need more centers, not less. Other points we are making with our lobbyist: HB5636 poses multiple risks to patient access, health outcomes, small business buy imposing additional costs, staffing burdens and limiting birthing opens for the women of Michigan.
The House of Representatives consists of 110 Members who are elected by the qualified electors of districts having approximately 77,000 to 91,000 residents.
