Impact of government cuts to uninsured funding on clients in midwifery care

An open letter to obstetrical colleagues written by Midwives Manavi Handa and Shezeen Suleman As you are likely aware, the provincial government announced on Friday they are cutting the funding program that has allowed a pathway for uninsured residents of our province to seek essential medical care and has allowed doctors a mechanism to bill for this care. The program is set to end on March 31, 2023, and this comes as very distressing news. As midwives who have worked for many years with uninsured clients, we are sharing some thoughts with you about the devastating impacts of these cuts to perinatal clients we serve. We are reaching out to you, our obstetrician colleagues, to highlight some of these impacts as we know you too serve these communities – the care you deliver will undoubtedly be impacted as well.