Midwifery Position Statement of the Jefferson County Board of Health (Kentucky)

Jefferson County families are increasingly seeking the services of midwives for their prenatal, intrapartum and postpartum care; however, since no local hospital grants admission privileges to Certified Nurse Midwives, many of these families are seeking services of midwives outside of Jefferson County, creating problems with both continuity and access to care. Some families are choosing to receive care from and have births attended by direct entry midwives, although such practitioners are not recognized and remain unlicensed by the Commonwealth of Kentucky. In order to protect the health of Jefferson County families desiring midwifery services, and to assure the safe delivery of such services, the Louisville and Jefferson County Board of Health requests the Louisville Metropolitan Hospital Council and its members to consider the credentialing of Certified Nurse Midwives to provide medical services consistent with their training, certification and licensure. In addition, the Louisville and Jefferson County Board of Health respectfully requests that the Commonwealth of Kentucky Cabinet for Health Services review the use and practice of direct entry midwives and consider establishing regulatory and licensure standards governing the practice of these providers.

Approved , December 17, 1997