Human rights in childbirth - opinion

Breaking news – women who choose to give birth at home or in independent birth centers may receive funding from the state, just as women who give birth in hospitals do.

Last March, following an initiative by the Birth Freedom Israel Movement, a revolutionary new law proposal was placed on the Knesset’s table. Put forth by MKs Michal Shir of Yesh Atid and Keti Shitrit of Likud, this bill would lead to equal rights for women who choose to give birth in the community (outside hospitals).

This new bill sets out to compare the birth-grant awarded to hospitals as compensation for each and every birth, with the grant awarded to cover the expenses of home or birth-center births.

Autonomy and freedom of choice

Autonomy and freedom of choice during pregnancy and childbirth are simply a birthright. On paper, every woman in Israel has the right to choose to give birth in a hospital, at home or in a birth center.

However, as the situation is today – Bituach Leumi pays hospitals only 16,011 NIS (an amount that is updated twice a year) per birth, while women who choose to give birth in the community must pay thousands of shekels for their legal and totally legitimate choice. This policy affects women’s basic human right to choose where and how to give birth.

Moreover, the High Court ruling from July 2021 ordered the reopening of independent birth centers that were closed in 2017 following a reckless decision by the Health Ministry. In their ruling, the High Court judges very clearly said that the ministry violated the freedom of choice of women by taking away the option of giving birth in an out-of-hospital natural birth center. The court took an unambiguous stand for freedom of choice in birth and more specifically – for a woman’s right to choose where to give birth.

Unfortunately but naturally, the process of pregnancy, birth and early parenting brings about many expenses, and women who do not have a budget that can finance an out-of-hospital birth, give up in advance. The fact that only hospital births are covered by the state of Israel creates a clear discrimination and a serious violation of the freedom of choice of women of poor to moderate means.

It is, in fact, a form of economic discrimination, where too many Israeli women cannot freely choose where to give birth. Our hope is that this bill, if passed, will right that wrong.

Israel must treat its women with respect

AND MAKE no mistake – this breech of human rights is both a part of and influences the treatment of birthing women in hospitals as well. A country that enshrines civil equality, that encourages procreation as a national agenda and also proudly holds the title for the highest (by far) birth rate of all OECD countries – must treat its women with the utmost respect, especially when it comes to their human rights in childbirth, no matter what their choices.

This, however, is not the case. Many women are injured emotionally (and physically) during the birth process, but their injuries are silenced. The childbirth-related feelings of helplessness, humiliation, and fear have scarred too many women, as well as entire families who face the aftermath of trauma, post-trauma and depression. Sometimes they carry these scars for many years after the actual event, sometimes for the rest of their lives.

Therefore, on top of this bill, our continuous efforts to influence a comprehensive set of regulations for independent birth centers, and with the understanding that the Israeli Patient’s Bill of Rights doesn’t cover maternal rights fully – we are also working on our own new legal proposals.

Called (perhaps temporarily) “The Law for Birthing Women’s Rights and Prevention of Harm During Childbirth,” this new law would provide legal assurances for the recognition and support of human rights in childbirth, as well as the unquestionable need to provide care that is based on those rights and is devoid of obstetric violence and otherwise harmful care.

All in all, it is an issue that concerns all of us, because the way we treat our women (wives, girlfriends, daughters, sisters, friends, patients, etc.) – before, during and after birth – has far-reaching effects on the wellbeing of women, men, children, families and society as a whole.

Please help us make sure this revolutionary law passes. It’s a big step in the right direction. The writer is director of Birth Freedom Israel. http://birthfreedomisrael.org