HB490 - Licensure of Midwives

• Establishes mandatory licensure program for midwives under the Department of Commerce and Consumer Affairs, administered by the director with an advisory committee of three midwives and two public members

• Creates two pathways for licensure: certified midwives (requiring American Midwifery Certification Board certification and master's degree from accredited program with advanced pharmacology) and certified professional midwives (requiring North American Registry of Midwives certification and accredited education)

• Grants prescriptive authority only to certified midwives for drugs appropriate to midwifery care within the advanced practice registered nurse exclusionary formulary; certified professional midwives limited to specific non-controlled drugs including oxygen, vitamin K, epinephrine, and anti-hemorrhagic agents

• Requires triennial license renewal with proof of current certification, ten contact hours of continuing education in pharmacology, and compliance documentation; establishes grounds for license denial, suspension, or revocation including unprofessional conduct and disciplinary actions in other jurisdictions

• Exempts certified nurse-midwives under Board of Nursing, student midwives under qualified preceptor supervision, emergency aid providers, and traditional birth attendants and Native Hawaiian healers who meet specific disclosure and practice requirements