This bill amends various chapters of the General Laws to require that all individual and group health insurance contracts, as well as hospital or medical expense insurance policies, provide coverage for services rendered by certified professional midwives (CPMs) starting January 1, 2026. A certified professional midwife is defined as a trained professional who has successfully completed an accredited educational program in midwifery, holds a current certification from the North American Registry of Midwives (NARM), and is licensed to practice midwifery in accordance with state law.

The bill specifies that insurers cannot impose additional requirements such as supervision, signature, or referral by other healthcare providers as a condition for reimbursement of CPM services, except when such requirements are also applicable to other categories of healthcare providers. It also states that no insurer or medical service corporation shall be required to pay for duplicate services rendered by both a CPM and another healthcare provider.

Furthermore, the bill mandates that health insurance contracts covering CPM services report utilization and cost information related to these services to the office of the health insurance commissioner on or before July 1, 2026, and annually thereafter. The office of the health insurance commissioner will define the required utilization and cost information.

Certain limited benefit policies, including those for hospital confinement indemnity, disability income, accident-only coverage, long-term care, Medicare supplement, limited benefit health, specified disease indemnity, and other limited benefit policies, are exempt from these requirements. The provisions of this bill will supersede and control over any conflicting or inconsistent laws, including general laws, special laws, or local regulations.