To amend sections 3701.351, 3702.30, 4723.01, 4723.02, 4723.03, 4723.06, 4723.07, 4723.08, 4723.271, 4723.28, 4723.282, 4723.33, 4723.34, 4723.341, 4723.35, 4723.41, 4723.43, 4723.431, 4723.432, 4723.481, 4723.483, 4723.487, 4723.488, 4723.4810, 4723.4811, 4723.50, 4723.91, 4723.99, 4731.22, and 4731.27 and to enact sections 5.2324, 3722.15, 4723.53, 4723.54, 4723.55, 4723.551, 4723.56, 4723.57, 4723.58, 4723.581, 4723.582, 4723.583, 4723.584, 4723.59, 4723.60, 4724.01, 4724.02, 4724.03, 4724.04, 4724.05, 4724.06, 4724.07, 4724.08, 4724.09, 4724.10, 4724.11, 4724.12, 4724.13, 4724.14, 4724.15, 4724.16, and 4724.99 of the Revised Code to regulate the practice of midwifery, to establish requirements for freestanding birthing centers, and to designate May 5th as the "Day of the Midwife."
HB537 would create a comprehensive statutory framework for midwifery in Ohio. It recognizes and regulates two new categories of practitioners under state law: certified midwives, licensed through the Board of Nursing, and licensed midwives, licensed through the Department of Commerce. The bill sets education, certification, renewal, scope-of-practice, informed-consent, collaboration, reporting, and discipline requirements for these practitioners, and it also creates a licensed midwifery advisory council to advise the Department of Commerce on rules for licensed midwives. In addition, it designates May 5 as the “Day of the Midwife.”
The bill also revises hospital and health-facility laws to accommodate midwifery practice. Hospitals that provide maternity services could not discriminate against qualified certified midwives or licensed midwives in granting privileges, and freestanding birthing centers would be licensed and regulated with quality standards, staffing requirements, and written transfer agreements with nearby hospitals. The bill permits midwives to attend births in hospitals, homes, medical offices, and freestanding birthing centers, while also establishing detailed requirements for home-birth consent, transfer planning, adverse-incident reporting, and emergency transfer procedures. It further amends nursing and medical board statutes to add certified midwives to disciplinary, reporting, and collaboration provisions, and it updates drug-prescribing rules and other related statutes to include certified midwives in certain limited prescribing authorities.
The bill’s impact on state law would be substantial, because it creates new licensing systems, new regulatory bodies, and new practice rules where Ohio law currently distinguishes mainly between certified nurse-midwives and other existing health professionals. It would add new licensure pathways, fees, enforcement mechanisms, and criminal penalties for unauthorized practice of licensed midwifery or misuse of protected titles. It also changes hospital credentialing and birthing-center licensing requirements, and it imposes new reporting obligations for births occurring outside hospitals, including adverse-incident reports and annual data submissions beginning in 2027.
The general sentiment reflected in the bill text is supportive of expanding and formalizing midwifery practice while adding guardrails for safety and oversight. The bill’s structure suggests an effort to balance access to out-of-hospital birth options with regulatory controls such as informed consent, transfer planning, physician consultation, and reporting requirements. Because there are no committee transcripts or votes available, there is no recorded floor or committee sentiment to measure, but the introduced version indicates a policy preference for legitimizing midwifery as a regulated health profession rather than leaving it largely outside a dedicated statutory framework.
The main points of contention likely center on scope of practice, home births, and the level of physician involvement required. The bill allows certified midwives and licensed midwives to attend higher-risk home births such as VBACs, twins, and breech births under specified conditions, which could raise safety concerns among obstetric and hospital stakeholders. It also creates a separate licensed midwifery system outside the nursing board, which may prompt debate over regulatory duplication, professional standards, and whether the bill expands access to birth options too broadly or not broadly enough. The reporting and transfer requirements appear designed to address those concerns, but they may also be viewed as burdensome by practitioners.
HB537 would significantly amend Ohio’s health-professions and health-facility statutes by creating new licensing and regulatory structures for certified midwives and licensed midwives, expanding hospital credentialing protections, and establishing freestanding birthing center standards. It would add new duties for the Board of Nursing and the Department of Commerce, create new advisory oversight for licensed midwifery, and impose new compliance, reporting, and disciplinary provisions affecting midwives, hospitals, physicians, and birthing centers.
No committee transcript or vote record is available, so there is no documented legislative debate or recorded vote sentiment. Based on the bill’s contents, the measure appears generally supportive of midwifery practice and access to out-of-hospital birth options, while also incorporating safety, oversight, and transfer requirements intended to address regulatory and clinical concerns.
Likely areas of contention include whether Ohio should create a separate licensed midwife category, how much physician collaboration should be required, and whether the bill goes too far in permitting home births for higher-risk situations such as VBAC, twins, and breech deliveries. Hospitals and medical groups may focus on credentialing, liability, and patient-safety issues, while midwifery advocates may emphasize access, autonomy, and recognition of midwifery as a distinct profession. The bill’s detailed reporting and transfer provisions appear aimed at mitigating those concerns.