MARCH 2006

Welcome to an extra issue of our online newsletter, with just one topic.....a request for your support of a piece of legislation that, if passed, could make a big impact on the availability of midwifery services in Washington State.

Midwives currently pay an exorbitantly high licensing fee: around $1200 per midwife per year. This license fee has increased by 150% since 2002. During the same period, the number of licensed midwives in the state dropped by one quarter, partly because increases in license fees and malpractice insurance premiums made it financially unsustainable.

Other healthcare professionals such as nurses, physicians, chiropractors, dentists, naturopaths, etc pay considerably lower licensing fees than midwives--typical licensing fees range from $25 to $250. Why so much less? Current laws require each group of licensed professionals to cover the Department of Health costs relating to their specific licensure. There are only about 90 licensed midwives in Washington State, so the cost is very high per midwife.

The current bill passing through Olympia instructs the Department of Health to investigate spreading licensing costs across all professions equally. This would result in a very small increase for many licensees, but a huge decrease for midwives.

So, how you can help?

Please call your state senator by no later than next Tuesday (February 28th) and urge him/her to request that the senate budget incorporate these provisions from the house supplemental budget in the final budget negotiations.

To find out who your senator is and obtain contact information, you can go to www.leg.wa.gov. The appropriation can be found on pages 84-85 of the House Supplemental Budget proposal. Here is the specific paragraph:

"The Department of Health shall evaluate alternative models for funding the regulation of the health professions, including charging an equivalent fee for all licensed, certified, and registered health professions and retaining the interest on the health professions account to defray regulatory costs.  The department will provided a report to the appropriate committees of the legislature on the potential fiscal and programmatic benefits and challenges of such alternative models by December 1, 2006."

Thank you for doing your part to ensure the continued viability of licensed midwifery in Washington State!