This is a report on our meeting with Richard Bays, Associate
Commissioner of Health
Monday September 23, 2002, and the Midwifery Board meeting, Tuesday,
September 24, 2002.
Please forward this email to other supportive e-groups.

The Meeting with Richard Bays
Those who met with the Associate Commissioner were:
Pictured (Left to right):
Kari Anne Light, the President of Texans for Midwifery (TfM) and
recent a participant in the Rules Revision Committee
Richard Bays, the Associate Commissioner of Health
Gail Johnson, CPM, member of the Texas Midwifery Board and a
participant in the Rules Revision Committee for the past two and half
years
Beth Overton, Midwife, President of The Association of Texas Midwives
(ATM) and a recent participant in the Rules Revision Committee
Not Pictured, but in attendance:
Ashley Kraft, CPM, board member of the Midwives Alliance of North
America (MANA), board member of the Association of Texas Midwives and
a participant in the Rules Revision Committee for the past two and
half years
Elizabeth Priebe, midwifery consumer and a participant in the Rules
Revision Committee for the past two and half years
Edna Daughtery, former Midwifery Board Chair and an advocate for
midwives. Edna is actively involved in various other boards at the
Texas Department of Health.
Carol Martin, CNM, member of the Texas Midwifery Board and a
participant in the Rules Revision Committee for the past two and half
years
Susan Jenkins, Legal Counsel for the Association of Texas Midwives
Our meeting with Richard Bays went very well. Mr. Bays was very
attentive to all of our concerns. We were able to present him with
evidence and details regarding various medical stakeholder groups who
have sought to delay the rules process for more than a year now. We
were also able to express our concerns regarding the recent behavior
of some of the TDH staff. We believe Mr. Bays took our concerns very
seriously and will make every effort to insure that the rules process
goes forth without further delays. He even made time in his busy
schedule to attend the Midwifery Board meeting the following day.
This gave him an opportunity to personally observe and insure the
meeting was conducted with fairness, respect and according to proper
procedure.

The Midwifery Board Meeting
The Midwifery Board met Tuesday, September 24, 2002 at 11:00 AM. The
room was full of public members (some having to stand). All of us who
met earlier with Richard Bays were in attendance. There were also
concerned and supportive consumers (along with many beautiful
children), and there were other midwives. Gayle Harris, (associated
with the Texas Medical Association) was also present for part of the
meeting, although she did not offer any public comments. Several
staff members were present and they were all very respectful,
including the new legal counsel for the Midwifery Board, Dan Meador.
As promised, Richard Bays attended most of the meeting. He offered
some supportive comments as well. David Richards (who now has George
Cato's old job), was in attendance but sat away from the table and
did not participate (with the exception of one time when he was
called upon by a board member to make a comment).

The meeting went extremely well and was finished by 12:30 PM. Many
public members offered some very good comments. The Midwifery Board
voted to pass the proposed rules on to the Board of Health (with only
a few minor changes). The proposed rules will then be considered for
publication in the Texas Register. The Board of Health will meet in
November. So please watch for TfM updates. This will also be a very
important meeting for us all to attend. Then during the 30 day public
comment period (once the rules are published), it will be extremely
important for us all to send supportive letters. Texans for Midwifery
will be providing guidelines and ideas for how you can best show your
support during the comment period.

We know from reliable sources that medical stakeholder groups will be
working furiously to stop these rules, even though they participated
in the Rules Revision Committee. TDH legal counsel reported to the
Midwifery Board that according to the votes taken during the RRC, the
medical stakeholders showed about a 98 to 99% agreement with the
current proposed draft. Nevertheless, we believe these proposed rules
will be contested during the public comment time and when they are
presented to the Board of Health. This makes it extremely important
for all consumers to speak out strongly if they want to see these
proposed rules be accepted. With these new rules we can better
protect both the rights and safety of the consumer.

Our current rules (the ones we wish to replace) are confusing and
conflicting when it comes to consumer rights. And according to those
who have served on the Midwifery Board Complaint Review Committee,
the current rules are not working well when it comes to enforcing
safe midwifery. The members of this Complaint Review Committee were
also active participants in the Rules Revision Committee. They
support these newly proposed rules and have told us that the proposed
rules will not only preserve the rights of the consumer but will also
provide a better means of protecting the safety of the consumer.

We want to personally say "thank you" to everyone who has worked so
hard to get us this far. You might say that this is "half time and
we are winning the game". It is a time for us all to give ourselves
a well deserved pat on the back. But it is also too early to say we
have won, because the game is certainly not over. The most intense
work is still ahead of us. So we must encourage one another and take
a brief but well deserved rest. Then we must be ready to come back
stronger than ever when the Board of Health meets in November. Now
is NOT a time to quit or let our guard down. If we do so, all of our
efforts for the past two and a half years will have been wasted.

So we encourage each of you to be thinking and planning ahead. Thank
you again for your support of midwifery care in Texas.

Sincerely,
Kari Anne Light, TfM President
Beth Overton, ATM President

Remember to tell others about TEXANS FOR MIDWIFERY!
http://www.texasmidwives.com/TfM




--- In columbusmidwifesanddoulas@y..., hawleyclan wrote:
> Hi! I'm posting to share some bad news for
> birthing mothers in Texas, but this has the potential to
> affect mothers across the USA. The Medical Associations
> have made their first outright move against Texas
> Midwives. We need all the moms who can, to please write in
> support of the Texas Midwives, no matter where you are
> from. If this latest move sticks, we could lose our
> right to birth with a midwife, and eventually our right
> to birth at home. Sounds extreme, but visit Indiana
> and Illinois' Midwifery sites, they are under extreme
> oppression, and action is being made to declare homebirth in
> any form "endangerment" of the baby and in effect,
> "child abuse". These are scary legislations, and as
> mothers we MUST band together for our freedom to be in
> control of our births and our caregivers. There are
> definitly control issues here, and a lot of misinformation.
> <br><br>Please visit: <a href=http://texasmidwives.com/rules.htm
target=new>http://texasmidwives.com/rules.htm</a>
> <br><br>It will only take a few minutes to read and let your
> voice be heard! If these Medical Associations see a
> flood of responses, maybe we can get the ball where it
> belongs, in the hands of MOTHERS. After all,<br><br>The
> Hand That Rocks the Cradle, Rules the World.
> <br><br>The Lord bless you,<br>Zoie
> Hawley<br><br>hawleyclan@y...