The Battle with AzDHS Continues…

Last week we saw a landmark event take place among the midwives of AZ and the Dept of Health.

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After years of watching AZ midwives try SO hard and without much success to create change by working with the AZ Department of Health, we have finally stood our ground and said that we will no longer stand for their inappropriate and illegal management of midwifery regulation.  Thank you so much to the midwives, student midwives, doulas, and consumers that stood bravely on the steps of AzDHS as we made this historic announcement.

I am sure the news and social media buzz has already reached you, but just in case you’ve been hibernating here is the scoop! You can check out the following news sources –   3TV    Cronkite   KJZZ   NewTimes   News12
On Thursday, November 5th, with support of midwife members and unanimous vote by the board, AAM filed legal action against AzDHS/Cara Christ. The decision to take this action was a serious one and was not considered lightly. We understand the potential pitfalls but firmly believe the positives that may come out of this action are worth the risk. This legal action, called a declaratory judgement, seeks to to four main things.
  • Stop the illegal investigation into midwives charts  that contain private health information.
  • Stop the aggressive enforcement of new rules that illegally reduced the midwives’ scope of practice.
  • Relieve midwives of the increased administrative burden.
  • Stop the enforcement of unconstitutional midwifery laws that violate the right t12187909_10153447117693551_2568884392368372840_no refuse vaginal exams, STI testing, and medical treatment.

 

There is a LOT of work to be done as we wait for the legal process to unfold. It is expected tha
t it will be months before we see the results of this lawsuit.
—Facebook group Unite AZ Midwives Hands We will be posting updates and future actions
—Contact Dir. Cara Christ, AG Mark Brnovich and Gov. Doug Ducey with your views on the points above
—Watch for media coverage, share news stories and comment on the media’s pages referencing the lawsuit whenever you see a story about midwives
—Watch online for blogs and comment to correct any errors, refer people to Unite AZ Midwives Hands for further action
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12115622_10153447234783551_4587849593449052946_n 12189765_10153447149453551_33542106681297837_n 12189910_10153447149803551_953394598263047320_n 12190855_10153447149548551_1758357904170484850_n 12063642_10153763662082915_3354583452913501752_n12191590_10153447162823551_1462165082752432490_n 12191800_10153447117338551_2564540703679193230_n 12193670_10153447234848551_306843109764259534_n 12208842_10153447235043551_1261821519273636799_n Wendi @DHS