A group of Alabama midwives and birth centers recently asked the Alabama Supreme Court to review a January 2026 state appellate court decision that would allow the Alabama Department of Public Health (ADPH) to require birth centers to obtain hospital licenses.
Members of the Alabama Court of Civil Appeals in January reversed a lower court's ruling that barred ADPH from licensing birth centers that operate in the midwifery model of care.
Montgomery County Circuit Judge Greg Griffin, in May 2025, blocked ADPH from licensing freestanding birth centers like hospitals after years of litigation and protests from midwives and other birthing advocates.
"The care we provide at birth centers not only improves pregnant Alabamians' outcomes — it changes their lives," Dr. Yashica Robinson, founder of the Alabama Birth Center, said on Monday. "Being able to get pregnancy care in their own communities, in a home-like setting, makes a world of difference — especially for Black Alabamians, who are more likely to experience complications and be disempowered as the result of medical racism. With Alabama facing a serious maternal and infant health crisis that is disproportionately affecting Black Alabamians, those with low incomes, and rural communities, the support birth centers provide our communities is more important than ever."
Plaintiff Oasis Family Birthing Center, Birmingham, Alabama's first freestanding birth center, first opened in 2022 and began safely providing essential care for pregnant Alabamians. Additional birth centers, including Plaintiff Alabama Birth Center in Huntsville, have also opened since an Alabama state trial court first blocked ADPH's attempt to restrict access to birth center-provided care at an earlier stage in this case. These birth centers will be able to continue providing care while the case continues on appeal.
"My patients choose midwifery care because of the comprehensive support we provide throughout pregnancy," said Jo Crawford, CPM, and staff midwife at Oasis Family Birthing Center. "I have seen first-hand how midwife-led care empowers birthing mothers, giving them control over their care and ensuring that they can deliver safely. It is essential that we continue to be able to provide this care to pregnant Alabamians."
The lawsuit, Oasis Family Birthing Center et. al. v. Alabama Department of Public Health, was originally filed in the Fifteenth Judicial Circuit Court in Montgomery in August 2023. The plaintiffs – Oasis Family Birthing Center in Birmingham, Heather Skanes, M.D., Alabama Birth Center in Huntsville, Yashica Robinson, M.D., the Alabama affiliate of the American College of Nurse-Midwives, Jo Crawford, CPM, and Tracie Stone, CPM – are represented by the American Civil Liberties Union, the ACLU of Alabama, Covington & Burling LLP, and Bobby Segall of Copeland Franco.
"Alabama's maternity care desert is growing larger every year, and no family should have to worry about whether they can find the care they need during pregnancy and through birth in the manner in which they desire," said JaTaune Bosby Gilchrist, the ACLU of Alabama's executive director. "We are hopeful that the Alabama Supreme Court will ensure that families will continue to have healthcare options throughout our state."
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