SS#2/SCS/SBs 1021 & 870 - This act creates a "Board of Professional Midwives" within the Division of Professional Registration. The board shall have the power to issue licenses and to suspend, revoke or deny the license of a professional midwife. The board shall develop practice guidelines regarding the practice of midwifery established by the North American Registry of Midwives (NARM), including the development of collaborative relationships with other healthcare practitioners who can provide care outside the scope of midwifery when necessary. A professional midwife is defined as one who is certified by NARM as a certified professional midwife providing for compensation those skills relevant to the care of women and infants before, during, and after birth. The practice of professional midwifery is defined as the science and art of examination, evaluation, assessment, counseling and treatment of women and infants by those methods commonly taught in any midwifery school, midwifery or college program in a university which has been accredited by the Midwifery Education Accreditation Council. The practice does not include use of operative surgery, nor the prescribing of drugs. The practice is not the practice of medicine, osteopathy, nursing or nurse-midwifery.
A licensed professional midwife is required to present a written disclosure statement to each client outlining the practice of midwifery, his or her training, experience, malpractice or liability insurance coverage, the midwife's collaborative arrangements with other health care providers, and an emergency medical plan. All licensed professional midwives shall be required to carry medical malpractice insurance under the same conditions required of physicians under current law. Licensed professional midwives shall be allowed to be reimbursed for services under the MO HealthNet program.
Licensed professional midwives shall follow current requirements for stillbirth and spontaneous fetal death reports, birth certificates and newborn screening. Such midwives shall also be required to retain patient records for a period of six years and keep such records confidential consisted with federal law.
No licensed professional midwife shall be permitted to prescribe drugs, perform vacuum deliveries, medical inductions or cesarean sections, use forceps during the delivery of an infant, or perform an abortion. A licensed professional midwife shall not administer prescription drugs, except for neonatal use of prophylactic ophthalmic medications as required under current law, vitamin K and oxygen, maternal use of Rho (D) immune globin, oxygen, local anesthetic and oxytocin and methylergonovine maleate for postpartum antihemorrhage.
Any hospital, physician, nurse, emergency services personnel, or any other licensed health care professional who renders emergency care, treatment, or assistance to any person or persons, when the need of such care, treatment, or assistance arises from care provided by a licensed professional midwife, shall not be held liable for any civil damages except for acts of gross negligence or those occasioned by willful and wanton acts by such person in rendering such emergency care, treatment, or assistance. A licensed health care provider or facility shall not be disciplined for assisting, enabling, aiding, procuring, advising or encouraging any person licensed to practice professional midwifery who practicing within the confines of this act.
It shall be unlawful for any person to engage in the practice of professional midwifery unless such person is licensed as a professional midwife under the provisions of this act. Also, any person who violates the provisions of this act is guilty of a Class A misdemeanor.
ADRIANE CROUSE