The American Medical Association Vs. A Woman's Right to Choose

Have you heard about this new statement from the American Medical Association regarding homebirth? They are joining up with ACOG (American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists) and working together towards one goal: hospital births for every woman.

Here is the AMA statement:

AMERICAN MEDICAL ASSOCIATION HOUSE OF DELEGATES

Resolution: 205

(A-08)

Introduced by: American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists

Subject: Home Deliveries

Referred to: Reference Committee B

(Craig W. Anderson, MD, Chair)

Whereas, Twenty-one states currently license midwives to attend home
births, all using the certified professional midwife (CPM) credential (CPM
or "lay" midwives), not the certified midwives (CM) credential which both
the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) and American
College of Nurse Midwives (ACNM) recognize[1] ; and

Whereas, There has been much attention in the media by celebrities having
home deliveries, with recent *Today Show* headings such as *"Ricki Lake
takes on baby birthing industry: Actress and former talk show host shares
her at-home delivery in new film"* [2] *; *and

Whereas, An apparently uncomplicated pregnancy or delivery can quickly
become very complicated in the setting of maternal hemorrhage, shoulder
dystocia, eclampsia or other obstetric emergencies, necessitating the need
for rigorous standards, appropriate oversight of obstetric providers, and
the availability of emergency care, for the health of both the mother and
the baby during a delivery; therefore be it

RESOLVED, That our American Medical Association support the recent American
College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) statement that "*the
safest setting for labor, delivery, and the immediate post-partum period is
in the hospital, or a birthing center within a hospital complex, that meets
standards jointly outlined by the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) and
ACOG, or in a freestanding birthing center that meets the standards of the
Accreditation Association for Ambulatory Health Care, The Joint Commission,
or the American Association of Birth Centers"* [3] (New HOD
Policy); and be it further

RESOLVED, That our AMA develop model legislation in support of the concept
that the safest setting for labor, delivery, and the immediate post-partum
period is in the hospital, or a birthing center within a hospital complex,
that meets standards jointly outlined by the AAP and ACOG, or in a
freestanding birthing center that meets the standards of the Accreditation
Association for Ambulatory Health Care, The Joint Commission, or the
American Association of Birth Centers." (Directive to Take Action)

(Click here to see the original post online, it's number 205.)

Quick summary: Giving birth anywhere but in a hospital or birth center within a hospital is considered child abuse and therefore women can be prosecuted.

Homebirths would be illegal, not just for midwives to attend but also illegal for women giving birth.

Why? When the US has some of the poorest mortality statistics for birth, when other industrialized western nations freely use midwives with great success, when the British have done their own studies and stated that for low-risk women homebirth is an option that provides excellent outcome for mother and infant, why is the United States--land of the free, you know--working to eliminate the freedom of a woman to choose where and how she gives birth? Why are doctors able to use the law to monopolize the profitable market found in births?

If women don't go to the hospital to give birth, then who profits? Doctors don't profit. Hospitals don't profit. Insurance companies aren't even involved. Women, that's who will profit. Women, who have safe and satisfying births at home free of anxiety, pressure, confusion, and domination by white coats. Women, who are able to breastfeed without interruption and bond with their babies without disturbance. Not formula companies, who cannot flood women with free samples while entrapped in the confusion and stress of the hospital. Not pharmaceutical companies, their vaccines and medications aren't on hand for use at home. Infants, infants are the ones who will profit from homebirths, born into peace, in a setting of familiar germs and sounds, into the waiting warm arms of the ones who love them and not rubber gloved hands and masked faces of strangers who take them far away from familiarity and poke and prod in the name of good health. Doctors and hospitals, they want to profit. After all, birth is an industry reaping a profit in the billions of dollars each year.

Not to say that every single birth should take place at home, not at all. But certainly every birth should not take place in a hospital setting.

Read what those involved with making the documentary "The Business of Being Born" have to say...this is a good response.

The Big Push For Midwives put out the following press release:

Father Knows Best Meets Big Brother Is Watching
Physician Group Seeks to Outlaw Home Birth-Is Jail for Moms Next?

WASHINGTON, D.C. (June 16, 2008)-Just in time for Father's Day, at its annual meeting last
weekend, the American Medical Association (AMA) adopted a resolution to introduce legislation
outlawing home birth, and potentially making criminals of the mothers who choose home birth with the
help of Certified Professional Midwives (CPMs) for their families.

"It's unclear what penalties the AMA will seek to impose on women who choose to give birth at home,
either for religious, cultural or financial reasons-or just because they didn't make it to the hospital in
time," said Susan Jenkins, Legal Counsel for The Big Push for Midwives 2008 campaign. "What we do
know, however, is that any state that enacts such a law will immediately find itself in court, since a law
dictating where a woman must give birth would be a clear violation of fundamental rights to privacy and
other freedoms currently protected by the U.S. Constitution."

Until the AMA proposed 'Resolution 205 on Home Deliveries,' no state had considered legislation
forcing women to deliver their babies in the hospital or limiting the choice of birth setting. Instead, states
have regulated the types of midwives that may legally provide care. Currently, 22 states already license
and regulate CPMs, who specialize in out-of-hospital maternity care and have received extensive training
to qualify as experts in the types of risk assessment and preventive care necessary for safe and high-
quality care for women who choose give birth at home. Certified Nurse Midwives (CNMs), who are
trained primarily as hospital-based providers, are licensed in all 50 states and the District of Columbia.

The resolution did not offer any science-based information for the AMA's anti-midwife or anti-home
birth position.

"Maternity care is a multi-billion dollar industry in the United States," said Steff Hedenkamp,
Communications Coordinator for The Big Push for Midwives. "So it's no surprise to see the AMA join the
American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists in its ongoing fight to corner the market and ensure
that the only midwives able to practice legally are hospital-based midwives forced to practice under
physician control. I will say, though, that I'm shocked to learn that the AMA is taking this turf battle to the
next level by setting the stage for outlawing home birth itself-a direct attack on those families who choose
home birth, who could be subject to criminal prosecution if the AMA has its way."

The Big Push for Midwives (http://www.TheBigPushforMidwives.org) is a nationally coordinated
campaign organized to advocate for regulation and licensure of Certified Professional Midwives (CPMs)
in all 50 states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico, and to push back against the attempts of the
American Medical Association to deny American families access to safe and legal midwifery care.

© 2008 The Big Push for Midwives Campaign. All rights reserved. The Big Push for Midwives is fiscally sponsored by Sustainable Markets Foundation,
a not-for-profit organization recognized as tax-exempt under Internal Revenue Code section 501(c)(3). Our mission is to build winning, state-of-the-art
advocacy campaigns towards successful regulation and licensure of Certified Professional Midwives (CPMs).
The Big Push for Midwives Campaign | www.TheBigPushforMidwives.org
80 Broad Street, Suite 1600, New York, NY 10004-2248 | 2300 M Street, N.W., Suite 800, Washington, D.C. 20037-1434

Will the doctors be successful in their campaign? Could homebirths actually be illegal? It frightens me to think of a world where I could not even make the most basic choices about my health care and something as personal and private as giving birth.