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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE |
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CONTACT: Amy Figard |
State Rep. Ronald Waters |
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Waters bill to expand midwives’ scope of practice signed into law
HARRISBURG, July 20 – State Rep. Ronald G. Waters announced that his bill to expand the scope of practice for Pennsylvania’s nurse midwives was signed into law today by Gov. Ed Rendell.
Waters said Act 50 will improve health care in Pennsylvania by allowing nurse midwives to prescribe prenatal vitamins and other prescriptions that are vital for healthy pregnancies. He said midwives already have been trained to perform these duties but have not been able to carry them out under Pennsylvania law.
“This fixes an outdated law to allow midwives to practice to the full extent of their training and ability,” Waters said. “It’s a simple way for us to expand access to health care for millions of Pennsylvanians at no cost to taxpayers.”
Before the bill was signed into law, Pennsylvania had been the only state in the nation where nurse midwives could not prescribe drugs. Nurse midwives deliver approximately 10 percent of the babies who are born in the state, a number that is much higher in rural areas.
“Maternity wards across the state are being forced to close, which makes it extremely difficult for pregnant women to receive health care,” Waters said, adding that having the alternative of a nurse midwife can solve that access problem.
“However, if she has to go to a different doctor to get her prenatal medications, it nullifies the convenience of having a midwife in the first place,” Waters said.
Waters’ legislation is part of a package of bills that make up Rendell’s Prescription for Pennsylvania – a plan to improve access to health care for all Pennsylvanians and make the health-care system more efficient and cost effective. Restrictions on dental hygienists, nurse practitioners and physician assistants have recently been lifted to expand their scopes of practice, as well.
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