Latest news with #SB87
Yahoo
24-04-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Alabama House committee passes contested midwife practice bill after public hearing
Johannah McDonald, a Huntsville resident, sits in a crowded House Health Committee meeting on April 23, 2025, with her daughter, Ruhama McDonald, to watched the public hearing on SB 87, which would only allow midwives to conduct the heel stick test of the newborn screening panel. An Alabama House committee Wednesday passed a bill changing the scope of practice for midwives in Alabama after a packed public hearing over the measure. As originally filed, SB 87, sponsored by Sen. Arthur Orr, R-Decatur, would have allowed midwives to administer three parts of newborn screenings: heel stick, hearing screening and Critical Congenital Heart Disease (CCHD) screening, which can provide early detection of genetic or metabolic conditions. But in the Senate, the bill was amended to only allow midwives to conduct a heel stick and adds language prohibiting midwives from providing 'any care' that is not in law or in an emergency to newborns. 'This bill started out with those three newborn screening tests included, but two of them were removed when the substitute was submitted over in the Senate. It passed the Senate, and so that's where the bill stands today,' said Rep. Ben Harrison, R-Elkmont, who is carrying the bill in the House. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX Midwives in Alabama were only allowed to practice after the state in 2017 started regulating midwifery and lifted a four-decade ban on the practice. Midwives have since then been fighting to provide more comprehensive care. The medical community has historically pushed back against such efforts, saying midwives don't have sufficient training, especially in cases of emergency. State health guidelines in Alabama require newborn screenings within 24-48 hours postpartum. Midwives must refer newborns to pediatricians, often delaying these critical tests. While midwives can administer screenings if a doctor is absent, they are not allowed to order these tests. Alabama midwives pull support from bill after addition of 'hostile language' The new version also states that while a licensed midwife 'may order and administer a heel lance within 72 hours after birth,' they are 'prohibited from interpreting any tests or screens under this subsection and shall cause any results to be referred to a physician of the mother's choosing who is licensed to practice medicine.' 'Today, I'm calling out a disgrace … SB 87 has been hijacked. As is, it denigrates the sanctity of motherhood, the safety of newborns, and above all, is a wolf in sheep's clothing,' said Aaron Crawford, president of the Alabama Birth Coalition, who blamed lobbyists for changes in the bill. Rep. Ernie Yarbrough, R-Trinity, said he opposed the bill as amended but supported its original intent. 'Choices and options are being removed or denied from Alabama mothers because it would seem special interest and a general attitude that our mothers and their midwives can't possibly make good decisions and should trust the experts. I would humbly submit that 6,000 years plus of evidence would be different to that,' he said. Maria Cranford, a midwife in north Alabama, said that national standards provide midwives are trained and educated in the care of mothers and newborns through the first six weeks after birth. 'This includes performing newborn exams, administering newborn screens, critical congenital heart screenings with referral… and newborn screenings,' she said. 'All of which I'm taught students to do in clinical settings — not here in Alabama, because I'm legally not allowed to.' Support for the amended bill came from the medical community, who said it would preserve medical standards. Linda Lee, executive director of the American Academy of Pediatrics Alabama chapter, read a statement from Dr. Nola Jean Ernest, a pediatrician in Enterprise. Claiming there's no evidence that midwifery improves infant mortality rates, Ernest said that 'all further medical evaluation and care' should be performed by a medical provider. 'Lay midwives attending home births do not have the equivalent training or clinical experience as pediatricians or neonatologists,' Ernest wrote in the letter. Danne Howard, deputy director of the Alabama Hospital Association, also supported the bill as it passed the Senate and defended notions that 'hospitals across the state have not abandoned labor and delivery.' Rural hospitals have faced financial struggle for years, which had led to some delivery units being closed around the state. 'Alabama Hospital [Association] supported the bill as it was passed by the Senate and look forward to additional work in years to come to see what other avenues that we can make great strides in improving access to care,' Howard said. The committee approved the bill on a voice vote. The legislation moves to the full House. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
Yahoo
08-04-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Alabama midwives pull support from bill after addition of ‘hostile language'
Sen. Larry Stutts, R-Tuscumbia, walks across the floor of the Alabama Senate on April 25, 2024 at the Alabama Statehouse in Montgomery, Alabama. A group representing Alabama midwives withdrew its support for a bill updating their practice regulations after Stutts introduced a substitute that they said was too restrictive. (Brian Lyman/Alabama Reflector) A group representing midwives in the state has withdrawn its support for a bill intended to update their practice regulations after a Senate committee made significant changes to it. As originally filed, SB 87, sponsored by Sen. Arthur Orr, R-Decatur, would have allowed midwives to administer three parts of newborn screenings: heel stick, hearing screening, and Critical Congenital Heart Disease (CCHD) screening, which can provide early detection of genetic or metabolic conditions. These screenings should be completed within 24-48 hours of birth, according to the Alabama Department of Public Health. Midwives currently have to recommend their patients to a pediatrician's office, often delaying the time-sensitive screenings. Alabama allows a birth attendant to administer them if a physician is absent but has not allowed midwives to acquire them. Nancy Megginson, legislative chair with the Alabama Midwives Alliance (ALMA), said in a phone interview Monday that midwives have faced ambiguity regarding their ability to conduct newborn screenings. While existing law requires midwives to instruct clients about these screenings, it only explicitly allows them to order the tests. This has led to midwives being denied the screening kits, particularly the blood spot test cards collected via heel sticks. 'Our issue has been once we were licensed, we started ordering the newborn screening cards from the Department of Public Health, because our law says a midwife shall order the newborn screening. We were actually told to stop trying to order them, that they weren't going to give them to us because they didn't know who would be administering it,' Megginson said. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX The substitute version introduced and adopted in the committee would authorize licensed midwives to administer a heel stick but explicitly states that a midwife 'is prohibited from interpreting any tests or screens under this subsection and shall cause any results to be referred to a physician of the mother choosing who is licensed to practice medicine in this state.' Midwives say the new language in the bill is too restrictive, particularly concerning newborn care and screening. Sen. Larry Stutts, R-Tuscumbia, who introduced the substitute, said in an interview Monday that saying midwives 'are not qualified' to interpret results. 'They're not pediatricians. They're not qualified to interpret the results and provide newborn care,' Stutts said. Under the substitute bill, Stutts said midwives 'can collect the sample and then send it to somebody that is qualified' but that the bill 'does not expand anything else that they can do.' Megginson said that the new language stating midwives are prohibited from providing any newborn care was 'hostile language that had never been discussed.' Midwives are trained in newborn care for up to six months, Megginson said, but they are not trying to interpret test results or diagnose conditions. Restricting their ability to perform state-mandated screenings or assist with basic newborn needs is 'absolutely absurd,' Megginson said. She is now actively lobbying legislators to amend the bill on the Senate floor. 'We are encouraging anyone to place an amendment, to put it back on track, where all three screenings would be included, where no language about newborn care to be written. We'd like that to be completely struck through,' Megginson said. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
Yahoo
04-04-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Alabama midwives worry changes made to legislation will restrict newborn care
CULLMAN, Ala. (WHNT) — A bill in the Alabama Senate is taking a look at what type of medical care licensed midwives can provide to newborns after they assist with birth. Since it was introduced, the bill has undergone some changes that midwives in the state say raise concerns. Animals now up for adoption after owners charged with 38 counts of animal cruelty Laura Reeder, a licensed midwife who works for Farmhouse Midwifery in Cullman, said part of her job is offering women the freedom to choose how they want to give birth and making the process as safe as possible for the mother and baby. She said the language added to an Alabama Senate bill is going to make that job difficult. 'Women want that continuity of care all the way through their birth,' Reeder said. 'They want the same provider that is doing their prenatal to be there when they deliver their baby and to help them through the postpartum as well.' Reeder offers a service that is increasingly being sought out by expectant mothers in Alabama. 'Midwives are able to go to people's homes in rural communities,' Reeder said. 'We have a lot of counties where women are having to drive over an hour to get access to their pediatrician and that's just really hard when you've just had a baby.' Decatur Police looking for missing woman In 2024, only 16 of Alabama's 55 rural counties have hospitals that offer obstetrical services, according to the Alabama Department of Public Health. Reeder, like other licensed midwives, has only been able to legally practice in Alabama for the past few years. Midwifery was legalized in the state in 2017. The Alabama State Board of Midwifery was established in 2018, and licenses were first handed out in 2019. Senate Bill 87, written by Sen. Arthur Orr, was originally designed to update language from the 2017 legislation. It initially allowed midwives more freedom to provide newborn screenings and other care needed shortly after birth. 'You can't determine when a baby's going to come,' Reeder said. 'Sometimes they come on weekends or holidays and, for that newborn, especially the heel prick, needs to be done within 24 to 48 hours, up to 72. Sometimes moms can't get an appointment with their doctors.' Changes were made to SB 87 during a meeting of the Alabama Senate Health Committee. Sen. Larry Stutts introduced a sub-bill that would only allow midwives to administer a heel lance, which is a blood sample taken shortly after birth used to screen babies for disorders. The bill limits other types of care. 'It prohibits us from any other care of the newborn unless an emergency,' said Reeder. 'After a baby's born, we're doing newborn exams head to toe. We're weighing the baby, measuring the baby and we send all of that information to the pediatrician after the birth. It's a real problem if we're prohibited from any newborn care at all.' The modified bill would restrict midwives from providing care that is not specifically granted by this legislation, including newborn screenings. Midwives are instead required to refer newborns to a doctor, and then, parents need to bring the baby to a pediatrician within 48 hours to receive a newborn screening. Reeder said the hours after birth are critical for assessing a baby. 'When we are caring for mom throughout pregnancy, we're caring for that mom and that baby both throughout the pregnancy,' Reeder said. 'So, we're not trying to be pediatricians. We're not trying diagnose or treat the babies. We're just trying to be able to do the assessments so that we can give the parents information on when to seek help for their babies.' Newborn screenings assess for conditions that are life-threatening or could impact a baby's development, like congenital heart defects, early hearing loss and metabolic and genetic disorders. Reeder said that newborn screenings are meant to make sure babies are healthy, and she has concerns about how placing limitations on the care midwives can provide will impact the safety of babies. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
03-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Alaska Legislature votes against inflation-adjusted pay rates for top officials
Snow falls on the Alaska State Capitol on Monday, Jan. 30, 2023, in Juneau, Alaska. (Photo by James Brooks/Alaska Beacon) The Alaska House of Representatives voted 36-0 on Friday to reject a proposal that would peg legislative salaries and the pay of other top state officials to inflation. The vote on Senate Bill 87 follows a 19-0 vote by the state Senate on Feb. 7 and puts lawmakers on the verge of rejecting an automatic inflation adjustment that had been proposed by a state commission earlier this year. Unless Gov. Mike Dunleavy vetoes SB 87, its enactment will negate the recommendations of the State Officers Compensation Commission. Those recommendations automatically take effect unless disapproved by the Legislature. Alaska's governor currently is paid approximately $176,000 per year in salary. The lieutenant governor's salary is approximately $140,000, and the salaries of state commissioners — in charge of agencies — are approximately $168,000 per year. State legislators receive $84,000 per year in salary. This year, the commission recommended that those figures all be automatically adjusted for inflation, with the first adjustment to take place after the 2026 election. Members of the commission said they wanted to keep legislative and executive-branch service affordable for members of the public, and automatic adjustments would remove the need for large, occasional increases in salaries. No other state employees receive automatic pay increases outside of the Legislature's annual budget process, though the state does negotiate multiyear contracts with workers. Legislators said they don't believe it makes sense to increase salaries when the state is facing significant budget pressure. 'Given our fiscal situation, we cannot allow pay raises for ourselves, department heads, lieutenant governor and governor to go into effect,' said Rep. Louise Stutes, R-Kodiak. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
