Tennessee Senate Bill SB2286

Tennessee 2025-2026 Regular Session

• Introduced: 2/2/26
• Engrossed: 3/19/26
• Enrolled: 3/26/26
• Passed: 4/13/26
• Chaptered: 5/4/26

Caption

AN ACT to amend Tennessee Code Annotated, Title 4, Chapter 29; Title 56, Chapter 32, Part 1; Title 56, Chapter 7, Part 24; Title 63; Title 68 and Title 71, Chapter 5, relative to midwifery.

Summary

SB2286 directs the Tennessee Commissioner of Health to use existing resources to study how other states regulate the independent practice of certified nurse midwives. The study must examine the range of practice autonomy granted in other states and assess how those policies relate to maternal health outcomes, including maternal morbidity and mortality. It must also look at geographically diverse states and consider factors such as maternity care deserts, provider shortages, hospital closures, recent policy changes expanding practice authority, and best-practice recommendations for independent practice. The bill does not immediately change licensure or scope-of-practice rules for midwives in Tennessee. Instead, it creates a reporting requirement: the commissioner must compile findings and recommendations and submit a report to legislative leaders and the legislative librarian by December 31, 2026. The act takes effect immediately upon becoming law.

Impact

The bill amends Tennessee law in the areas of state government, insurance, health professions, public health, and welfare-related statutes by adding a study mandate tied to midwifery and certified nurse midwife practice. Its practical legal effect is limited to requiring the Department of Health to conduct and report on a comparative policy study; it does not itself expand or restrict certified nurse midwife practice, change licensing standards, or alter reimbursement rules. The main affected parties are the Department of Health, the General Assembly, certified nurse midwives, and stakeholders in maternal health and maternity care access.

Sentiment

The overall sentiment appears strongly favorable and largely noncontroversial. The bill advanced unanimously in the Senate Commerce and Labor Committee, then passed the Senate floor with only one dissenting vote on third consideration, and later passed final consideration unanimously. That voting pattern suggests broad bipartisan support for gathering more information on midwifery practice and maternal health outcomes before making any substantive policy changes.

Contention

The main point of potential contention is the policy question underlying the study: whether Tennessee should move toward greater independent practice authority for certified nurse midwives. Supporters appear to favor a data-driven review of how autonomy affects maternal outcomes and access to care, while any opposition likely centers on concerns about scope of practice, patient safety, and the implications of expanding independent practice. However, the recorded votes show little overt conflict over the study itself, indicating that disagreement, if any, is more about future policy choices than this reporting measure.