Contact:

Hannah Ellis

256-975-3845

alabamabirthcoalitioninfo@gmail.com 

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:  

October 11, 2012

4^th Annual Pro-Midwife Events To Benefit Alabama Birth Coalition 

MOBILE, AL- On Saturday, October 20, 2012 families across the state will participate in pro-midwife events, hosted by Alabama Birth Coalition. Walks 4 Midwives are planned in Huntsville, The Shoals, and Birmingham. A Miles 4 Midwives 5 K and Fun Run is scheduled in Mobile. These festivities are the fourth annual pro-midwife, statewide events hosted by Alabama Birth Coalition, and attended by hundreds of Alabama citizens each year. 

Proceeds from the events will benefit the Alabama BirthCoalition, which is a 501c4 non-profit, grassroots organization whose mission is to improve maternity care in Alabama and ensure that women in all birth settings have access to evidence-based care. The organization has particularly focused on addressing Alabama’s lack of licensed care providers to attend home births in the state. Its proposed Senate and House bills seek to license Certified Professional Midwives (CPMs) to attend out-of-hospital births in Alabama. CPMs are highly trained individuals who provide care to women throughout the childbearing cycle and who specialize in out-of-hospital childbirth. According to the CDC, out-of-hospital births have increased over 18% in Alabama. Currently, families who choose an out-of-hospital birth are faced with the choice of giving birth without a trained attendant, traveling out of state while in labor, or hiring unlicensed midwives who risk prosecution for attending births within state lines.

For more information about Alabama Birth Coalition and the October 20, 2012 Walks 4 Midwives, and the Miles 4 Midwives 5 K and Fun Run, visit www.alabamabirthcoalition.org or find the organization on Facebook.