Midwife-friendly laws and regulations tend to coincide with lower rates of premature births, cesarean deliveries and newborn deaths, according to a U.S.-wide “report card” that ranks each of the 50 states on the quality of their maternity care.

The first-of-its-kind study found a strong connection between the role of midwives in the health care system – what the researchers call “midwifery integration” – and birth outcomes. States with high midwifery integration, like Washington and Oregon, generally had better results, while states with the least integration, primarily in the Midwest and South, tended to do worse.

As with most population health studies, the statistical association between the role of midwives and birth outcomes doesn’t prove a cause-and-effect relationship. Other factors, especially race…. read on at https://www.med.ubc.ca/midwifery-linked-to-better-birth-outcomes-in-state-by-state-report-card/?fbclid=IwAR1uUUv79adj85mgaCSichkCjGKpTMlYNogWxZXUTQwBqJFrEV0wRxuvkBI