Advocacy
ACNM Advocacy: Advancing the Practice of Midwifery
ACNM exists to promote, protect, and advance the interests of over 14,000 advanced practice certified nurse-midwives and certified midwives throughout the United States. Our advocacy efforts focus on improving the policy environment for the practice of midwifery and increasing access to midwives and midwifery-led care models. We also support efforts by consumers, employers, payers, and providers to ensure that high quality, high value care is delivered to the women, individuals, and communities midwives serve. This work is done in furtherance of ACNM’s strategic goals. The specific focus of our work is defined in our policy agenda. ACNM educates, advocates and actively lobbies Congress and the Executive Branch on behalf of midwives, midwifery students, midwifery programs, and the people midwives serve. ACNM works to ensure that midwives and midwifery are included in all discussions around improving the culture of maternal and women’s health in the United States.
Recent Posts
News & Updates

ACNM Capitol Hill Day – May 4-5, 2025
ACNM will host a Legislative Briefing and Advocacy “Hill” Day in Washington, D.C. on Sunday, May 4th and Monday, May 5th, 2025. ACNM will host a Legislative Briefing and Advocacy

ACNM rejects the dismantling of protections and access to healthcare for people who are marginalized
ACNM rejects the dismantling of protections and access to healthcare for people who are marginalized. The attack on the rights of women, transgender individuals, and Black and Brown people by
ACNM Policy Agenda, 2023-2024
The mission of the American College of Nurse-Midwives (ACNM) is to support midwives, promote the midwifery model-of-care and advance the practice of midwifery in order to achieve optimal health for people through the lifespan, with expertise in primary and gynecologic care, promoting optimal pregnancy, physiologic birth, postpartum care, and care of the newborn for the first 28 days. ACNM supports the practice of midwives by promoting education, research, and policies that advance clinical excellence, expansion of a robust and diverse midwifery workforce, and equitable legislation, regulation, and institutional policies that establish midwifery as the standard of care for all communities. All people in the United States should have access to midwives and midwifery-led care, and policies should support and enable the increasing proportion of women who choose midwives as their care providers.
ACNM is committed to protecting, promoting and advancing the practice of midwifery in the United States. ACNM will support the continued growth of the midwifery profession by advocating for policies that reflect ACNM’s standards, expand the midwifery workforce, and increase the visibility and recognition of the value of midwifery care. Specifically, during the 118th session of Congress (2023 – 2024) ACNM will:
- Supporting policies that allow Certified Nurse-Midwives (CNMs) and Certified Midwives (CMs) to practice to the full extent of their education, clinical training, certification and experience. ACNM will support state affiliates in their pursuit of legislative and regulatory reforms that seek to eliminate unnecessary and costly supervision and collaborative agreement requirements in the states and efforts that seek to establish equity in Medicaid reimbursement, guaranteed inclusion in Medicaid managed care plans and equity and inclusion within private insurance plans.
- Supporting the Committee for Midwife Advocates of the Certified Midwife (CMAC) in efforts to establish a licensure mechanism for CMs in states that have expressed an interest in advancing legislation to license CMs and in states where CNMs have independent practice (i.e., full practice authority).
- Modernizing policy surrounding facility credentialing and privileging of midwives by pursuing legislation to amend Medicare’s Conditions of Participation to include CNMs and CMs in the definition of medical staff.
- Working to obtain recognition of the Certified Midwife credential in federal statute.
- Supporting reforms that reduce the incentives for excessive utilization of unnecessary medical interventions and increase the incentives for utilization of measures supporting normal physiologic birth.
- Working to establish a designated funding stream within the Health Resources and Services Administration’s (HRSA) workforce development programs specific to grants for accredited midwifery education programs. Funding will prioritized for programs who demonstrate their intent to racially and ethnically diversify their student body and for increasing the number of preceptors across the country.
- Ensuring midwives who work in obstetrical training and teaching facilities who oversee services performed by medical residents can be explicitly reimbursed for performing those services by updating Medicare statute to include CNMs and CMs as eligible for reimbursement under Medicare’s Graduate Medical Education program.
- Establishing a pilot project for reimbursing CNMs/CMs for training and supervising student midwives.
- Supporting policies that increase access to student aid and alleviate burdens associated with student debt, in addition to continued advocacy for funding of midwifery education programs.
- Promoting and advancing midwifery as practiced by CNMs and CMs across the continuum of care.
- Branding ACNM and the midwives ACNM represents on Capitol Hill, among maternal health stakeholder groups and within the Department of Health and Human Services an other entities with a vested interest in improving maternal health.
Grassroots Advocacy
Grassroots action by ACNM members makes a critical difference to our public policy efforts. Your involvement matters!
The Advocacy and Government Affairs department is committed to helping affiliates achieve their advocacy goals. Examples of support that we can provide include, but are not limited to:
- Writing letters of support or opposition in response to proposed legislation and regulation
- Communicating national policy on issues
- Developing talking points
- Compiling aggregate data to demonstrate trends
Visit ACNM’s Grassroots Action Center to engage in ACNM’s current grassroots campaigns! The Center allows members and midwifery advocates to quickly and easily contact their legislators regarding pending legislation at the state and federal level that is of importance to the midwifery profession.
Federal Maternal Health-related Legislation
Please note that this is NOT an exhaustive list.
Sign-On Advocacy Letters
- ACNM Joins AANP Statement Rebuking Bloomberg Article - August 2024
- Stakeholder Letter of Support for ICAN Act to House E&C and W&M Committees - June 2023
- Stakeholder Letter of Support for Midwives for MOMS Reintroduction - June 2023
- Stakeholder Letter of Support to House E&C Committee on MOMS Act - July 2022
- ACNM Joins Statement of Endorsement to Rescind Trump Era Title X Changes
News & Releases
2023
2020
2019
ACNM Joins SCOTUS Amicus Brief on Abortion
MOMMA Act Fact Sheet (H.R. 1897/S. 916)
Removing Barriers to Midwifery Care: Hospital Privileges
Removing Barriers to Midwifery Care: Federal Funding for Midwifery Education Programs
Title VIII Nursing Workforce Reauthorization Act Fact Sheet (H.R. 728/S. 1399)
ACNM Justification Statement for Increased Federal Funding for Midwifery Education Programs
2018
ACNM and ACOG Statement of Joint Practice Relations
ACNM Issues Comments in Response to Proposed Title X Changes – July 2018
ACNM Joins Stakeholders on Letter of Support for PREEMIE Act
ACNM Joint Statement on Passage of H.R. 6
Green Journal Article on Opioid Use Disorder and Midwifery Practice – March 2018
Women’s Health Coalition Issues Statement in Opposition to Domestic Gag Rule
Maternal Health Stakeholders Submit MMRC FY 19 Appropriations Request
ACOG Letter of Support for CNM MAT Prescribing – May 2018
ACNM Issue Brief on CNM Rx Authority for MAT – May 2018
ACNM Submits Comments on Rhode Island Birth Center Regulations
ACNM Opposition Letter to Florida Advanced Birth Center Bill
2017
ACNM Supports Licensure of CMs in Washington D.C.
ACNM Submits Comments to DC City Council on APRN Statute
ACNM Comments to W&M Committee on Burdensome Medicare Regulations
ACNM Signs On to Civil Society Recommendations for Review of Mexico City Policy
ACNM Signals Support for Child Protection and Family Support Act of 2017
ACNM Lends Support For Preventing Maternal Deaths Act
Women’s Health Coalition Urges Senate to Reject AHCA Provision
ACNM Urges Senate to Prioritize the Healthcare of Women
Issue Briefs & Fact Sheets
- CNM, CM, & CPM Comparison Chart (May 2023)
- Essential Facts About Midwives
- BABIES ACT Fact Sheet (2021)
- Midwives for Moms Fact Sheet (2021)
- CMS Strong Start Finding Issue Brief (2018)
- CNM and MAT Background and Issue Brief (2018)
- ACNM Issue Brief on CNM Rx Authority for MAT (2018)
- Preventing Maternal Deaths Act Issue Brief (2017)
- Transforming Maternity Care Slide Deck - June 2023
- Midwives for MOMS Act Reintroduced in Congress - June 2023
- Black Maternal Momnibus Act is Reintroduced in Congress - May 2023
- HHS Advisory Committee on Infant Mortality Recommendations - August 2021
- FY 2022 House Labor, HHS Appropriations Report - July 2021
- FY 2022 Medicare PFS Proposed CNM MIPS Measures - July 2021
- Midwives for MOMS Policy Brief - April 2021