Some Midwives Break the Law To Assist With Home Births
In Georgia, many midwives are providing home birth services despite lacking nursing licenses, making their practice illegal. The demand for home births has surged, with a 72% increase in Georgia from 2020 to 2024. Advocates argue that legalizing and regulating midwifery could enhance safety for mothers and babies during home births.
- ▪Home births in Georgia have increased by 72% from 2020 to 2024.
- ▪Midwives who assist with home births often provide more postpartum care than traditional healthcare providers.
- ▪Currently, delivering babies without a nursing license can lead to legal repercussions for midwives in several states.
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GWINNETT COUNTY, Ga. — In a midwife’s suburban Atlanta home with a playground and chicken coop outside, Madie Collins lay on an examination table while the midwife measured her pregnant belly. Unlike at many a doctor’s office, no crinkly paper sheet covered the table and no antiseptic chill lingered in the air. The room next door, where Collins’ appointment began, was filled with children’s toys and scented candles and warmed by a wood-burning stove. The certified professional midwife pressed the button on a handheld Doppler ultrasound machine she placed on Collins’ belly. “That’s her heartbeat,” she said to Collins’ 3-year-old daughter, who sat beside her mom as a whooshing sound filled the room. “I think Mommy’s baby’s right here.”The midwife is not licensed as a nurse.
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