Licensed
Midwifery in New York State
• A Licensed Midwife is an independent healthcare provider who
specializes in women’s and newborns’ healthcare. Midwives
are experts in care during pregnancy, childbirth, the post-delivery
period and for gynecological needs of healthy women throughout their
lives. Licensed Midwives practice in a variety of settings including
private offices, hospitals, public health clinics, birth centers and
homes.
• Licensed Midwives practice within a health care system that
provides for consultation, collaborative management, or referral to
physicians as indicated by the health status of the client.
• The Midwifery Practice Act was passed in New York State in
1992, although nurse-midwives have been practicing in New York since
1930 under an old Public Health code.
Statistics
• New York State has licensed almost 1100 midwives since 1992.
New York has the largest licensed midwifery population of the states.
• In 2002, New York’s Licensed Midwives attended 27,954
births. These deliveries account for approximately 11% of the total
births in New York last year.
• New York midwives practice in big cities ranging from Buffalo,
Rochester, Binghamton, Syracuse, and Albany to New York City, smaller
cities like Cooperstown, Cortland, Poughkeepsie, and in rural communities
like Saranac Lake and Plattsburgh.
• There are currently 402 midwifery practice sites throughout
New York State.
Education
• The American College of Nurse-Midwives has accredited 44
midwifery education programs nationally. Four of these programs
are based in New York State.
• Columbia University, New York University and the State Universities
at Brooklyn and Stony Brook provide midwifery education in New York
State.
• SUNY Brooklyn, in conjunction with North Central Bronx Hospital
became the first nationally accredited program to educate midwives
who are not also nurses (called direct-entry).
• Columbia is the oldest master's program currently in existence.
Practice and Reimbursement Issues
• The State Board of Midwifery regulates practice in New York
State.
• New York Midwives have had prescriptive authority since
1992.
• Although all insurance companies and managed care organizations
registered in NYS are supposed to include midwives on their panels
and reimburse for midwifery services, some companies continue to
resist this mandate.
• Some hospitals have restricted Licensed Midwives from obtaining
professional privileges which makes it difficult to serve women
in those areas.
• Midwives, along with their obstetrical colleagues, are facing
a major malpractice crisis at this time.
