MIDWIVES for Service Members Act of 2025
H.R. 3202, the MIDWIVES for Service Members Act of 2025, would direct the Department of Defense to run a five-year pilot program to provide midwife services to TRICARE-covered beneficiaries (active duty service members and dependents). The pilot must start within a year of enactment and, if successful, could lead to a permanent program. The bill requires an implementation plan within 180 days and annual reports throughout the pilot period that analyze costs, utilization, demographics, and a wide range of health and access outcomes (including maternal/fetal health, preterm and C-section rates, patient satisfaction, and access measures like wait and travel times). It also defines who qualifies as a “covered midwife” and ensures midwife services meet international and state credentialing standards.
Key Points
- 1Establishes a five-year pilot program to provide services from covered midwives to TRICARE beneficiaries, to begin within one year after enactment.
- 2Creates the possibility to establish a permanent program if the pilot is successful, including potential regulatory changes to expand services.
- 3Requires an implementation plan within 180 days and annual reports to the Armed Services committees detailing costs, utilization, demographics, quality of care (maternal/fetal outcomes, preterm births, low birth weight, cesarean rates), patient satisfaction, access metrics (wait times, travel), and recommendations.
- 4Defines “covered midwife” as a certified professional midwife or certified midwife who meets international midwifery standards and state credentialing requirements.
- 5Ties TRICARE coverage for midwife services to the definitions in the 10 U.S.C. § 1072 framework, ensuring alignment with existing military health benefits.