A Voice for Midwifery in Iowa.
Decisions made at the Iowa Capitol and within regulatory agencies directly affect midwives, our patients, and access to healthcare throughout our state.
Iowa ACNM works to ensure that midwives have a voice in those conversations.
Our advocacy efforts focus on protecting and advancing midwifery practice, removing unnecessary barriers to care, strengthening Iowa's maternal healthcare workforce, and improving access to evidence-based reproductive and maternity care.
Our Advocacy Priorities
Our priorities evolve as the needs of Iowa midwives and communities change. Our work may include:
Protecting full-scope midwifery practice.
Improving access to maternity care, particularly in rural and underserved communities.
Supporting policies that improve maternal and infant health.
Advocating for equitable reimbursement and recognition of midwifery services.
Supporting Iowa's maternal healthcare workforce.
Educating policymakers about Certified Nurse-Midwives and Certified Midwives.
Collaborating with other healthcare and community organizations on shared priorities.
Take Action
You don't have to be a policy expert to advocate for midwifery.
Iowa ACNM helps members understand proposed legislation, connect with elected officials, and make their voices heard when decisions affecting midwifery and maternal healthcare are being made.
OB care in Iowa: What’s going on?
· Closure of rural hospital maternity services results in lack of access to maternity care for local communities.
· Shrinking obstetrical workforce may increase rates of poor maternity outcomes and/or contribute to disparities in poor maternity outcomes.
· Raising maternal mortality rate: 20.2 maternal deaths per 100,000 births.
· Black people in Iowa are 6x more likely to die during or shortly after childbirth, with national average being 3x more likely.
Pay Parity
· Midwives provide high value care. Midwives achieve equivalent health outcomes while using fewer high—cost services such as inductions and cesarean surgery.
· Midwives receive 85% Medicaid reimbursement compared to a physician.
· Iowa Total Care reinstated their doula program and are paying doulas $1375.00. Molina is paying their doulas $900. Each CNM’s total pay for global with Medicaid MCOs is $1159.00. Physicians are paid $1364.46 global. Midwives have substantially more education and liability than doulas but are paid less in Iowa.
· Providing Medicaid parity for midwifery care increases the competition to provide care for people who use Medicaid insurance.
· Adopting a midwife Medicaid parity improves the sustainability of midwifery practices that provide care for low-income communities.
· Protecting the right of midwives to admit their patients to the hospital removes unnecessary requirements for physicians to duplicate the work of midwives.
