Illinois Midwifery
As many of you know by now, we are homebirthers. Unfortunately, for far too many mothers in Illinois, homebirth choices are limited. Below is a short clip on the current crisis state of midwifery in Illinois. You can visit Illinois Families for Midwifery for more information on our new upcoming House Bill 226, the Home Birth Safety Act. If you reside in IL, I urge you to look up your own state legislator (both Senator and Representative) and contact them regarding House Bill 226. It has not yet had a formal introduction to either the House or Senate, but the planning is in the works. Please remember that this is NOT your U.S. Senator and Representative, but rather the men and women at the Illinois state level. Even if you think I am crazy for choosing this option, I hope that you would support me in making this choice for my family. Contacting politicians is MUCH easier than you would think . . . a phone call, email or even short letter asking for their support of H.B. 226 would be SOOOOO very helpful to our cause!
Enjoy the clip!
posted by Shannon @ 2:13 PM
3 Comments:
Shannon,
I'm on my way to homebirth.
1) C section with OB
2) hospital birth with CNM
I guess my question is, I know homebirthers in IL, so is it homebirth that is illegal, or is is just there is no system for non-CNM homebirth midwives?
I support the bill, of course, but don't like the "scariest thing of all" from Collette's mouth being giving birth without anyone at all. I have given birth unassisted and support a woman's right to birth unassisted if that is what she chooses. I happily have sat down and talked with IL legislators, gone to Springfield with my children to support legalization, but it bothers me when the rhetoric turns to scare tactics.
Monika--I'm very biased, so if you are ever interested in chatting more about homebirth, I'm all ears! ;) Homebirth itself is not illegal, but you are correct, there is not an established licensure for non-CNM midwives, commonly known as Direct-Entry Midwives (DEMs) or Certified Professional Midwives (CPMs) in other states w/ established licensure. This means any woman in IL can choose to have a homebirth and should she do so w/ an "illegal" midwife (DEM or CPM), the midwife can be prosecuted for "practicing medicine without a license". It's really rather silly. I can birth at home, but if I pay someone to be there w/ me for support, monitoring, etc. she can be put in jail. There are NO CNMs who do homebirth south of I-80 in Illinois and there are very few in Chicagoland. There simply are not enough providers to cover the demand of homebirth families in our state. I encourage you to get involved with the legislation and stay abreast of the situation. Contact friends, family about it. Every contact made w/ legislators really makes a difference!
Linda--I agree about the "scare tactics" but given that IL midwifery groups have been working on legislation for over 20+ years, I think they have realized it is an attention grabber. And it is so important that we grab the attention of our legislators as the medical lobbyists have much more in their budget to spend on getting their attention. ;) The MDs are saying it is NEVER safe to birth at home and Collette was making the point that families are continuing to make that choice, regardless of "licensed" providers attending. Would they rather have some sort of licensure system or none at all (which they perceive as increasing the risk of birth)? I also completely agree re: woman's choice to birth unassisted, but that is like the radical "extreme" for most legislators who know nothing but hospital birth to begin with. ;) I also don't like the restrictions on VBACs in the current language of the bill (especially being a Homebirth after Cesarean mama myself), but I do realize we need a starting point here in Illinois.
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