These are the talking points that will have the biggest impact.

Ask to speak with the healthcare legislative aide or leave a message including your phone number for a call back. DON'T HANG UP until you've spoken with both Senators and your House Representative. The system will automatically connect you to the next call after your legislator hangs up.

1) I am a _____ (midwife, birth center supporter, staff, parent, physician, or other) in your state. (Briefly tell your story)

2) I’m calling you today to ask Representative ___________ to become a co-sponsor of the Midwives for Service Members bill, HR 9335.

3) A growing number of hospitals on military bases no longer provide maternity care to their active duty members and their spouses. When this care is needed, military beneficiaries must seek prenatal, birth, and postpartum care independently from an authorized provider. For some, this means driving long distances for care.

4) In addition, 35% of U.S. counties have no perinatal care services. In these areas, pregnancy-related deaths and serious complications are higher.

5) Birth centers are one solution to this lack of access but are currently underutilized. Birth centers have been shown to provide high-quality midwifery-led care, but only one midwifery credential, the Certified Nurse-Midwife, is covered by TRICARE. Other licensed midwives, including Certified Professional Midwives and Certified Midwives are not authorized as providers.

5) Over half of all US birth centers are staffed by Certified Professional Midwives who are currently excluded from being covered as authorized providers in TRICARE. This means when these services are chosen, military families have to pay out-of-pocket. When CPMs and CMs are added as covered providers, that will double the access to birth centers and birth center care.

The current state of maternity care for service members and their spouses creates barriers to access and can impact maternal and infant health. This is not in keeping with our nation’s commitment to providing the best care to our military families. For these reasons, we urge you to co-sponsor the MIDWIVES for Service Members Act (H.R. 9335) to increase access to care and improve childbirth outcomes.

Contact Kimberly Walker (kimberly.walker@mail.house.gov) in Representative Kilmer’s office for more information and to co-sponsor.


*If you're a decision maker at a midwifery practice, consider inviting your legislator to visit your birth center, hospital or clinic to hear from staff or families about the impact of midwifery care in their community.*

1) We would like to invite Senator/Representative _________ and staff to visit our birth center/clinic for a tour so they can see the benefits of midwifery care to communities in our state.