Babies born at birth centers are 25% less likely to be born preterm versus those receiving typical Medicaid care, according to a 2018take place in hospitals
Welch has a two-pronged approach for helping ensure underrepresented communities aren't left out of the birth-center movement. The first is in her own backyard with an organization called Birth Detroit. At the moment it offers perinatal care and won’t start delivering babies until construction of its birthing center is completed, estimated for sometime next year. Part of its commitment is that no one in need of services will be turned away, Welch said.
“A lot of people of color are the ones who are most interested in out-of-hospital births, especially because of the issues around trust and feeling safe in the places of care,” said Keesara, who is not affiliated with Welch’s initiatives. “And so having a specific fund to open places where [Black, Indigenous or people of color] communities feel safe, I think, is really important and is a unique angle that needs to be promoted.