MAH supports and advocates for the recognition and licensure of direct-entry midwives in the state of Hawai'i. The State Auditor's Sunrise Analysis done in 2017 states: "Given the nature of the work performed by midwives, we recommend that the Legislature consider establishing a mandatory licensing framework for all midwives, [...] , to protect the consumers of the services, i.e., the mothers and newborns." You can read the entire Sunrise Analysis by clicking this link-- Sunrise Analysis: Regulation of Certified Professional Midwives
A bill was introduced for the 2019 legislative session as a part of the Women's Legislative Caucus Package. The Senate bill is SB1033, and the House bill is HB490. We will continue to update this page with information and resources as they be come available. You can also follow our Facebook page here.
Please bookmark this page to find out the latest updates! We look forward to a lively and productive 2019 legislative session.
July 2020 Current Licensure News
It's here!!!! Certified Professional Midwives and Certified Midwives (direct-entry midwives) can now apply for licensure in the State of Hawaiʻi. The license is provided through the Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs Professional and Vocational Licensing Division. The Director of DCCA oversees the Midwives Program. Please refer to the Midwives Program website for information regarding the application for licensure and Hawaiʻi State Rules, including HRS Chapter 457J: Midwives. Please note the application for licensure requires a non-refundable payment of $50. If your license application is approved, you will receive a notice for licensure payment. The three year license fee is $1,368. Lower fees apply if you apply during a different year of the 3 year cycle. Please refer to the application for specific fees.
2019 Legislation News
SB 1033 was signed into law as Act 32 on April 30, 2019 by Governor Ige! Congratulations Hawaiʻi and thank you to everyone who contributed to this monumental effort!
If you would like to learn more about SB1033 please visit our FAQs page here.
To read MAH's press release published in the Big Island Now news section on 5/5/19, please click here.
To read the Hawaii Tribune Herald interview with Dani Dougherty and Nina Millar published on 4/20/19, please click here.
To read MAH's press release published in the Big Island Now news section on 4/19/19, please click here.
To read an interview with the Star Advertiser published on Monday 4/15/19, please click here.
To watch an interview with KITV4 on Friday 4/12/19 right after SB1033 passed out of the Senate and legislation, please click here.
MAH Press Release 5/5/19 & 4/17/2019
Midwives Alliance of Hawaiʻi provided a press release on May 5, 2019 in celebration of Governor Ige signing Senate Bill 1033 into law as Act 32. Midwives Alliance of Hawaiʻi published a press release regarding Senate Bill 1033 on April 17, 2019.
Please click the link below to read, download and distribute.
2019's bill has been the continuation of years of hard work to bring regulation of midwifery to Hawai'i.
Midwives were regulated in Hawai'i starting in the early 1900s. First they were registered, then certified, then licensed; at that point only certified nurse-midwives were able to be licensed. In 1999, certified nurse-midwives were placed under the board of nursing as advanced practice registered nurses and the midwifery law was repealed. Midwifery became unregulated; this was not the intent of the action at the time. A bill introduced in 1998 to license midwifery resulted in a sunrise analysis that recommended midwifery to be regulated. This effort has been on going since 1999, with a second sunrise analysis ordered in 2017.
Read the 1999 and 2017 Sunrise Analyses here:
The Birth Place Lab looked at the impact of midwives across the US. Here is a short video summary of the findings:
Hawai'i ranked 40th out of all 50 states, with a score of 25 out of 100 over all in Access and Integration Maternity Care Mapping (AIMM) study. This means that in many ways, Hawai'i is missing out on the benefits of integrating midwives into the state health care system. Licensure would go a long way to improving the state's maternity care outcomes. Here is the score card from the Midwifery Integration State Scoring System: Hawai'i State Score Card
To read the peer reviewed journal article reporting the findings of the Birth Place Lab on the impacts of integrating midwives into the health care system, click the following link:
Mapping Integration of Midwives Across the United States: Impact on access, equity, and outcomes
The map below shows how many states currently license or regulate certified professional midwives (one type of direct-entry midwife):
