Bill would allow midwives to attend home births

The Health and Human Services Committee heard testimony March 1 on a bill that would remove the state’s prohibition on a certified nurse midwife attending a home birth.

LB428, sponsored by Malcolm Sen. Ken Haar, would retain the requirement that a certified nurse midwife operate under the supervision of a licensed practitioner who is required to authorize a home birth.

“It does not create an autonomous practice for certified nurse midwives,” Haar said.

Shanna Wright, member of the National Association of Social Workers, testified in support of the bill. The current prohibition does not prohibit home births, she said, but only prohibits certified professionals from attending those births.

Fifty-eight planned home births were reported in Nebraska in 2012, Wright said, and those births would be safer if midwives legally could attend.

“It is wrong to continue legislatively blocking access to qualified medical care for Nebraska women,” she said.

Shahab Abdessalam, a pediatric surgeon at Children’s Hospital in Omaha, also testified in support of the bill. The best way to track home births and maintain safety is to legalize and regulate attendance by medical professionals, he said.

“Pregnancy is not a disease,” Abdessalam said, “and does not always need to take place in a hospital.”

Sarah Cada, a Lincoln obstetrician, testified in opposition. She said the risk of maternal death for home births is two to three times higher than for hospital births.

The committee took no immediate action on the bill.