Legislature considering making homebirth midwifery a felony in NC

[Pat]

I received this email this morning. It is unfortunate that the NC Medical Society is advocating this.


Pat

Dear Friends,

It is now time to make our voices heard. Senate Bill 164 if enacted will turn our CPMs into felons and potentially put our community in crisis. Senate Bill 164 turns the unauthorized practice of medicine into a felony and our CPMs have been in violation of the Medical Practice Act since 2007 when maternity care and parturition was established as the practice of medicine. This is hostile to women & midwives and disruptive to the legislative process that we have worked hard to conform to for 2 years now. We need to be sure this bill dies.

This coming Monday I will meet with Sen. Purcell to brief him on HB333 and convey our objections to SB164.

We need all of you to call and e-mail Sen. Forrester and Sen. Purcell during the next 2 days to express your concerns. Please DO NOT direct your frustration at the senators, they may very well not appreciate what this means. Our frustration is with the leadership of the North Carolina Medical Society. Our argument is that they have been obstructionists and have been successful in making North Carolina stand out among its neighbors as denying mothers access to regulated Certified Professional Midwives which is counter to safety. Here are some elements to include in your messages:

1) IMPORTANT – thank them both for their attention to NC Friends of Midwives and the needs of women in NC.
2) North Carolina is in the process of enacting legislation to license CPMs. NCFOM has remained in process and has followed the process outlined by the legislature. SB164 is a hostile and disruptive move and the NC Medical Society is out-of-process.
3) How can North Carolina make felons the same midwives who are licensed and regulated in our neighbor states of VA, TN and SC?
4) Do not make our midwives felons!
5) The North Carolina Medical Society is NOT a good faith partner in addressing the problems of North Carolina’s mothers who birth at home.
6) The 2008 House Select Committee on Licensing Midwives produced bill language instructing the stakeholders, including NCOBGYN and NCACOG societies, to work with the Midwifery Joint Committee to establish Rules/Regulations/ Standards for licensing CPMs in NC. This is a desperate attempt to obstruct the legislator’s call for collaboration.

Please use your own words and it is not necessary to make all of these points. It is important to call (their Office number) and e-mail.

Sen. Forrester
http://www.ncga. state.nc. us/gascripts/ members/viewMemb er.pl?sChamber= Senate&nUserID=28

Sen. Purcell
http://www.ncga. state.nc. us/gascripts/ members/viewMemb er.pl?sChamber= Senate&nUserID=51

Let’s make our voices heard!

[Pat]

I received this request from NCFOM and wanted to share for anyone interested in helping.


Pat



North Carolina Friends of Midwives (NCFOM) is currently in the process of trying to get Certified Professional Midwives (CPMs) licensed in North Carolina. All of our surrounding states license them. You can find out all about what is happening at www.ncfom.org

We are looking for endorsing organizations. Do you think your organization would be interested in endorsing us? If so you could write a letter, addressed to the Members of the General Assembly, State Legislative Building, Raleigh, NC and salutation can be "Dear Legislator," Your organization is writing to inform you of our endorsement of the NC Friends of Midwives Legislative Mission as stated below.

The North Carolina Friends of Midwives recognize a woman’s right to choose the setting and care provider for birth, the validity and safety of a planned home birth attended by a trained midwife, the need to assure that the standards of care are maintained and that care providers are held accountable for their actions, and the need for licensed midwives to be seamlessly integrated into the healthcare system as the primary care provider for home births.

The North Carolina Friends of Midwives shall seek the introduction and passage of legislation to license Certified Professional Midwives to address these issues, shall continue to be present to prevent legislation to the contrary, and shall insist on the correction of the statutory and regulatory deficiencies.

A short blurb about what Your Organization is could also be added along with any other specific comments about midwifery and homebirth you might want to add, but neither are necessary. We will be saving the letters in a file but will present in our packets to Legislators a copy of our Legislative Mission and a list of endorsing organizations. You can mail the letter to Erin Henry at 12317 Hartwick Ct., Raleigh, NC 27613 or you can e-mail it to her at [e-mail] If you need my address please let me know.

Brooke Atkinson
Board of Directors, NCFOM

[Kimberly Crews]

I am preparing to write to the senate in regards to the SB 164 and realized that Senators Forrester and Purcell authored this bill. Could we also include Senators Clodfelter, Smith Dannelly, Goodall, Graham, and Rucho all of whom represent Mecklenburg County? Especially, if this bill leaves the Judiciary Committee and makes it's way to a vote?

[Pat]

Folks are welcome to initiate a "petition" of sorts and write to whomever, collectively. Also, Kimberly, you might want to send your suggestion onto Brooke, she is a member here.


Pat