NEW YORK STATE ASSEMBLY MEMORANDUM IN SUPPORT OF LEGISLATION submitted in accordance with Assembly Rule III, Sec 1(f)
BILL NUMBER: A6168A
SPONSOR: Solages TITLE OF BILL:
An act to amend the public health law, in relation to permitting expect-
ing and new mothers' access to their doulas
PURPOSE:
To allow pregnant individuals to designate a doula to have full access
to themselves and their newborn infant throughout a maternal health
facility.
SUMMARY:
Section 1. Amends the public health law by adding a new section 2500-1.
Section 2. Sets the effective date.
JUSTIFICATION:
Doulas are trained professionals who provide emotional, physical, and
informational support to expecting mothers and their families before,
during, and after childbirth. They serve as advocates for the birthing
people, helping them navigate the healthcare system and providing infor-
mation and encouragement throughout the process. Research has shown
that having a doula present during childbirth can lead to shorter labor,
reduced need for pain medication, fewer medical interventions, and high-
er rates of breastfeeding
1.
A 2021 report by the NYC Department of Health found that doulas often
face several barriers when providing services in hospital settings, such
as requests to prove their training and/or certification (neither of
which are required in New York State)
2. Furthermore, doula's are
often prohibited from seeing their clients postpartum. Ensuring preg-
nant persons have access to their designated doula throughout maternal
health facilities has been shown to mitigate stressors that can nega-
tively impact birth outcomes.
RACIAL JUSTICE IMPACT:
In the United States, the mortality rate for Black mothers is dispropor-
tionately higher than that for White women. This also applies to New
York State, where Black women die from pregnancy-related causes at three
times the rate of White women. Further, in New York City, Black women
are twelve times as likely to suffer a pregnancy-related death
3.
Pregnant people of color face disproportionately higher rates of preg-
nancy complications, mistreatment during childbirth, and maternal
mortality. Doulas help reduce the impacts of racism and racial bias in
healthcare by providing individually tailored, culturally attentive, and
patient-centered care.
Deploying doula's has proven to be an effective strategy in addressing
racial disparities in maternal healthcare by reducing severe maternal
morbidity and mortality. Yet, a lack of awareness and access to doula
services contribute to the underutilization of this important resource.
GENDER JUSTICE IMPACT:
Doulas can play a crucial role in supporting birthing people and fami-
lies during one of the most important moments of their lives. Estab-
lishing a directory where pregnant people can easily connect with quali-
fied doula caregivers will improve the health outcomes of pregnant women
by increasing accessibility. The benefit of this bill expands beyond
expecting mothers and also benefits doulas themselves, as 94.3% of the
doula workforce is made up of women
4. Ensuring that doula's can prac-
tice within hospitals expands their job opportunities and allows them to
fulfill their responsibilities. This bill will increase accessibility
for all birthing people to doula care, which will improve the health
outcomes for mothers and particularly help people of color who are
expecting.
LEGISLATIVE HISTORY:
New bill.
FISCAL IMPLICATIONS:
TBD.
EFFECTIVE DATE:
This act shall take effect immediately.
1 https://tcf.org/content/commentarv/worsening-u-s-maternal- health-
crisis- three-graphs/
2 httns://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=i&ci=&esrc=s
&source=web&cd=&ved=2ahUK EwiE01H p6_z9AhUFEEkEBIRZDU1J QF no ECAU OA
Q&url=https%3 A%2F%2Fwww.nyc. gov%2F asset
s%2Fdoh%2Fdownloads%2Fpdf%2Fcsi%2Fdoula-report-2021.pdf&usr---
A0vVaw3mz7 DJRD Mq1nP-iXDZGiEe
3https://vvww.propublica.org/article/nothing-protects- black-women-
from- dying-in-nregnancv-a nd-childbirth
4 https://www.zippia.com/doula-jobs/demographics/
STATE OF NEW YORK
________________________________________________________________________
6168--A
2023-2024 Regular Sessions
IN ASSEMBLY
April 3, 2023
___________
Introduced by M. of A. SOLAGES -- read once and referred to the Commit-
tee on Health -- committee discharged, bill amended, ordered reprinted
as amended and recommitted to said committee
AN ACT to amend the public health law, in relation to permitting expect-
ing and new mothers' access to their doulas
The People of the State of New York, represented in Senate and Assem-bly, do enact as follows:
1 Section 1. The public health law is amended by adding a new section
2 2500-m to read as follows:
3 § 2500-m. Access to doulas. When a person is admitted to a maternal
4 health care facility for delivery and/or inpatient care post-delivery,
5 such person may designate a doula to have access to such person. The
6 maternal health care facility shall not deny such person access to such
7 person's designated doula. For the purposes of this section, the term
8 "maternal health care facility" shall mean a hospital or freestanding
9 birthing center providing perinatal services in accordance with article
10 twenty-eight of this chapter and applicable regulations.
11 § 2. This act shall take effect on the ninetieth day after it shall
12 have become a law.
EXPLANATION--Matter in italics (underscored) is new; matter in brackets
[] is old law to be omitted.
LBD10180-04-3
