Credit: Anna Claire Vollers/Stateline/TNS
When Katie Chubb announced in 2021 she was planning to open a freestanding birth center in Augusta, Georgia, it seemed like everybody in town was excited about it.
She met with local physicians and nurses who said they would welcome her Augusta Birth Center as a provider of midwifery services for low-risk pregnancies. Hundreds of people signed the interest form on her website. She met with the head of obstetrics at University Hospital (now Piedmont Augusta), located less than a mile from the proposed birth center location, who responded positively, she said.
But when Chubb submitted her 800-page application to the state health department for a so-called Certificate of Need — a requirement to open a licensed birth center in Georgia — she discovered that not everybody in town was enthusiastic about the Augusta Birth Center.
Two local hospitals, including the one she’d met with, […]
As the article states: “Two local hospitals, including the one she’d met with, filed letters of opposition with the state. They cited several concerns, including a belief that the center hadn’t demonstrated its services were needed in the community. Those hospitals, plus a third in the area, refused to sign a written agreement with Chubb saying they would accept emergency transfers from the birth center. As a result, the state denied Chubb’s application.”
So it’s not just the government standing in the way ( although it is ), it is the combination of the government in conjunction with local hospitals. This is a hidden veto process that both the state and the hospitals can play, in a manner generally unseen by the public.
As the article states: ” Critics counter that doctors and hospitals are more interested in preserving their monopoly on maternal care.” This is more true than most realize. The entire “certificate of need” process is one easily abused by state officials to play favorites with services they favor vs. ones they don’t. This snapshot lays bare many fallacies of the system: hospitals are not for profit, the needs of patients always come first, the state is an impartial player in the system.
As many articles continue to document our States play an increasing role in the provision of healthcare. There is clearly a need here, and this is a case where the government needs to get out of the way and allow services to be offered to those who want it. Is it any wonder why the public increasingly distrusts both government and healthcare institutions? They see time and time again that their interests are not served.