New Florida Law Permits Non-Hospital Clinics To Perform C-sections

Florida has enacted a law allowing non-hospital clinics, such as birthing centers, to perform cesarean sections. Governor Ron DeSantis signed the new law in March, permitting ‘advanced birth centers’ to perform the procedure in outpatient settings.

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As reported by the Daily Mail , the law was initially introduced as a solution to the lack of maternity care across the state, mainly due to low federal reimbursement rates for Medicaid patients. Since 2019, seventeen maternity centers in Florida hospitals have closed, leading to several areas becoming maternity care deserts. However, medical professionals have expressed concerns about the dangers of performing a major surgical procedure outside a more controlled hospital environment.

C-sections, which involve making incisions in the mother’s uterus to deliver the baby, carry risks such as severe infection, bleeding, and complications in future pregnancies, which could be exacerbated in a non-hospital setting. Mary Mayhew, CEO of the Florida Hospital Association, stated that non-hospital clinics do not address the issue of service availability in underserved areas and could worsen the situation by drawing essential hospital staff away from hospitals.

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The move to allow outpatient C-sections comes amid broader concerns about the U.S. maternity care system. A study by JAVA reported that the maternity mortality rate in the U.S. has doubled from 1999 to 2019, with significant disparities among racial and ethnic groups.

Critics also stated that the new law could pose a poor substitute for quality obstetrical care, likely to worsen rather than improve outcomes for mothers and their babies.

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