(a) The Board of Medical Licensure and Discipline shall form the Midwifery Advisory Council (Council) which consists of 7 voting members. The members shall consist of: 4 midwives, 2 CMs and 2 CPMs, whenever possible; 1 certified nurse midwife (CNM) as described in Chapter 19 of this title; 1 practicing obstetrician with hospital admitting privileges who is a member of the American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists and certified by the American Board of Obstetrics and Gynecology; and 1 practicing pediatrician with hospital admitting privileges and certification from the American Board of Pediatrics. The inaugural midwife members shall be licensed pursuant to this subchapter no later than October 1, 2016, and all midwife members thereafter shall be licensed pursuant to this subchapter. The Council may elect officers as necessary. The Chair of the Council shall be a midwife in good standing. The members of the Council shall be compensated at an appropriate and reasonable level as determined by the Division of Professional Regulation and may be reimbursed for meeting-related travel expenses at the State‘s current approved rate.

(b) Members shall be appointed so that the terms of 4 members, including no more than 2 midwives, shall expire 2 years after the initial appointment and that the terms of the remaining 3 members shall expire 3 years after the initial appointment. Thereafter, members are each appointed by the Board of Medical Licensure and Discipline for a term of 3 years, subject to removal by the Governor for neglect of duty, malfeasance, or misfeasance in office, and may succeed himself or herself for 1 additional 3-year term; provided, however, that if a member is initially appointed to fill a vacancy, the member may succeed himself or herself for only 1 additional 3-year term. A person appointed to fill a vacancy on the Council is entitled to hold office for the remainder of the unexpired term of the former member. Each term of office expires on the date specified in the appointment; however, a council member whose term of office has expired remains eligible to participate in council proceedings until replaced by the Board. A person who has been twice appointed to the Council or who has served on the Council for 6 years within any 9-year period may not again serve until an interim period of at least 1 year has expired since the person last served.

(c) The Council shall promulgate rules and regulations governing the practice of midwifery, the scope of practice of CMs and the scope of practice of CPMs, after public hearing and subject to the approval of the Board of Medical Licensure and Discipline. The Board must approve or reject proposed rules or regulations submitted to it by the Council within 60 days. If the Board fails to approve or reject the proposed rules or regulations within 60 days, the proposed rules or regulations are deemed to be approved by the Board. Such rules and regulations shall include, but not be limited to:

(1) Procedures for the examination of applicants and issuance of licenses to those applicants it finds qualified;

(2) Licensing and licensing renewal requirements;

(3) Standards for education, and training programs and the procedures for denial, revocation, or suspension of such program for failure to meet or maintain the standards;

(4) Continuing education requirements for licensed midwives;

(5) Description of the responsibilities of the midwife toward the client and her newborn in the antepartum, intrapartum, and the postpartum periods, including newborn assessment and screening consistent with existing statute.

(6) Practice standards for licensed midwives that shall include, but shall not be limited to:

a. Adoption of ethical standards for licensed midwives;

b. Maintenance of records of care, including client charts and birth statistics;

c. Participation in peer review and continuing education with midwives, physicians and nurses;

d. Requirement to have a second attendant certified in neonatal resuscitation at birth;

e. Description of the tools and equipment a midwife may and may not use during delivery; and

f. Medications and tests the midwife is authorized to obtain and administer in various settings as delineated in regulation.

(d) License suspension, revocation, and nonrenewal. — (1) The Council, after appropriate notice and hearing, may recommend to the Board of Medical Licensure and Discipline that the Board revoke, suspend, or refuse to issue a license, or place a licensee on probation, or otherwise discipline a licensee found guilty of unprofessional conduct. Unprofessional conduct includes, but is not limited to, fraud, deceit, incompetence, gross negligence, dishonesty, failure to adhere to the procedures of § 1799JJ of this title below, or other behavior in the licensee’s professional activity which is likely to endanger the public health, safety, or welfare. The Council shall recommend that the Board permanently revoke the license of a person who is convicted of a felony sexual offense. The Council may recommend and Board may take necessary action against a midwife who is unable to practice midwifery with reasonable skill or safety to clients because of physical or mental illness, impairment or incompetence; including illness, impairment, or incompetence caused by or related to substance abuse. Disciplinary action or other action taken against a midwife must be in accordance with the procedures for disciplinary and other actions against licensed health professionals, including appeals as set forth in subchapter IV of this chapter except that a hearing panel for a complaint against a midwife shall be convened as described below.

(2) In the event of a formal or informal complaint concerning the activity of a licensee that the Board determines, exercising its reasonable discretion, presents a clear and immediate danger to the public health, safety or welfare, the Board may temporarily suspend the person’s license, pending a hearing, upon the written order of the Secretary of State or the Secretary’s designee, with the concurrence of the Council Chair or the Council Chair’s designee.

a. An order temporarily suspending a license to practice may not be issued by the Board, unless the midwife or the midwife’s attorney received at least 24 hours’ written or oral notice prior to the temporary suspension and unless the Secretary of State or the Secretary’s designee, and the Council Chair or the Council Chair’s designee concur. At a minimum, the initial oral or written notice will inform the midwife or the midwife’s attorney of:

1. The essential terms of the suspension;

2. The reason for the suspension;

3. The midwife’s right to a hearing; and

4. The midwife’s right to an expedited hearing.

b. Within 48 hours of receiving the initial oral or written notice, a midwife whose license has been temporarily suspended pursuant to this section must be formally notified of the temporary suspension in writing. Formal notification consists of, at minimum:

1. A copy of the complaint;

2. The order of temporary suspension pending a hearing; and

3. A description of the hearing including the midwife’s right to request an expedited hearing,

personally served upon the midwife or sent by certified mail, return receipt requested, to the midwife’s last known address.

c. A midwife whose license to practice has been temporarily suspended pursuant to this section may request, and has a right to, an expedited hearing. The Board shall schedule the hearing on an expedited basis, provided that the Board receives the request within 5 calendar days from the date on which the person received formal notification of the decision to temporarily suspend the person’s license.

d. As soon as possible after the issuance of an order temporarily suspending a midwife’s license to practice pending a hearing, the Council Chair shall appoint a 3-member hearing panel consisting of 3 members; 1 of the 3 shall be an unbiased physician member of the Council or Board; 2 of the 3 shall be unbiased midwife members of the Council; and if possible and no conflict exists, at least 1 of the 2 Council midwife members shall be of the same licensure type as the midwife under complaint. The Chair of the hearing panel shall be 1 of the Council midwife members. After notice to the midwife pursuant this section, the hearing panel shall convene within 60 calendar days of the date of the issuance of the order of temporary suspension to consider the evidence regarding the matters alleged in the complaint. If a midwife requests an expedited hearing, the hearing panel shall convene within 15 calendar days of the receipt by the Council of the request. The 3-member panel shall conduct a hearing in accordance with the procedures set forth in § 1734 of this title and shall render a decision within 15 calendar days of the hearing. An order of temporary suspension pending a hearing may remain in effect for no longer than 60 days from the date of the issuance of the order unless the temporarily suspended midwife requests a continuance of the hearing date. If the midwife requests a continuance, the order of temporary suspension will remain in effect until the hearing panel convenes and a decision is rendered by the Board.

e. In addition to making findings of fact, the hearing panel shall also determine whether the facts found by it constitute a clear and immediate danger to public health. If the hearing panel determines that the facts found constitute a clear and immediate danger to public health, the order of temporary suspension must remain in effect until the Board, under § 8735 of Title 29, deliberates and reaches conclusions of law based upon the findings of fact made by the hearing panel. An order of temporary suspension may not remain in effect for longer than 60 days from the date of the decision rendered by the hearing panel unless the suspended midwife requests an extension of the order pending a final decision of the Board. Upon the final decision of the Board, an order of temporary suspension is vacated as a matter of law and is replaced by the disciplinary action, if any, ordered by the Board.

(e) The Council shall meet at least quarterly and at such other times as license applications are pending. The Council shall present to the Board the names of individuals qualified to be licensed, shall recommend disciplinary action against licensees as necessary, and shall suggest changes in operations or regulations pursuant to this section. The Council shall keep minutes of its meetings which shall be available to the public upon FOIA request, except that information discussed by the Council concerning a mother or child which is private in nature or which would tend to reveal the identity of a client of a midwife shall be discussed in executive session pursuant to Chapter 100 of Title 29.

(f) The Board shall grant limited prescriptive authority upon the issuance of a certified professional midwife license or certified midwife license. The Council shall recommend and the Board shall approve the parameters of the limited prescriptive authority in its regulations.

80 Del. Laws, c. 33, § ?1; 80 Del. Laws, c. 258, §§ 3, 4; 81 Del. Laws, c. 97, § 5; 81 Del. Laws, c. 424, § 15;