(CBS Detroit) – Michigan’s maternal health outcomes still vary by location and race, but a series of bills in the state Senate aim to change that.
“Once I became a midwife, I thought everyone should have access to this care,” said Nicole White, co-founder of Birth Detroit.
White has been assisting with births for more than 20 years and recently co-founded her own birth center, a space for prenatal and postnatal care and birth. White said her job is similar to the care she receives in a hospital.
“We’re doing the same types of physical exams. We’re doing the same types of lab-like things,” she told CBS News Detroit.
But White says midwives are also working to provide additional care.
“We’re spending more time on education. We’re spending more time on nutrition. We’re spending more time on mental health,” she said.
She said expanding access to that care and improving relationships between local birth centers and hospitals is a clear way to improve the health outcomes for mothers and babies, which is the purpose of these eight bills. It states that.
“By collecting data, creating complaint forms, supporting more doulas, and protecting people from discrimination, we will make great strides in addressing some of the gaps,” said State Sen. Stephanie Chan. I believe we can do it.”
Chan said the bill would strengthen community-led birth programs, improve processes for working with hospitals, and address issues of racism and biased birth care.
“I think it will have a big impact,” Chan said. “Some of these bills actually affect everyone, regardless of their racial background.”
The package of bills now goes to the state Senate for debate.
Elle Meyers
