NACPM Issue Briefs
Issue Brief 2025.1: COVID-19, Vaccines, and Pregnancy
This brief outlines NACPM’s perspective on a critical issue shaping midwifery policy and practice. Regarding COVID-19, pregnancy, body autonomy, and informed decision making, the National Association of Certified Professional Midwives affirms that COVID-19 is a serious illness with well-documented risks to our clients, their placentas, and infants. Peer-reviewed research shows that COVID-19 infection during pregnancy is associated with complications including higher rates of preterm birth, preeclampsia, respiratory complication and inflammatory responses in newborns.¹,²,³ These are not hypothetical risks: they are real, measurable harms that disproportionately affect the most vulnerable.
At the same time, we hold that the decision to receive any vaccine, including the COVID-19 vaccine, is deeply personal and must be grounded in informed choice. Scientific evidence is essential, and not sufficient on its own…
Issue Brief 2025.2: Acetaminophen Use in Pregnancy
This brief outlines NACPM’s perspective on a critical issue shaping midwifery policy and practice.
Regarding the use of acetaminophen in pregnancy, the National Association of Certified Professional Midwives affirms that fevers in pregnancy may indicate infection and serious illness with well-documented risks to our clients and infants.
Claims suggesting a link between autism and acetaminophen (Tylenol) use in pregnancy have raised questions and concerns for many. At NACPM, we believe in shared decision-making grounded in accurate information. Every client has the right to make choices about their care that align with their medical needs, values, and personal or spiritual beliefs. We respect those who prefer not to include acetaminophen in their care plan, and we are committed to offering evidence-based information alongside supportive alternatives…
Issue Brief 2025.3: Newborn Hepatitis B Vaccine Administration
The National Association of Certified Professional Midwives (NACPM) issues this brief to articulate our position on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices’ (ACIP) updated guidance regarding hepatitis B vaccination for newborns born to parents who screen negative for hepatitis B during pregnancy.
ACIP’s updated recommendation eliminates the automatic hepatitis B vaccination at birth in cases where prenatal screening is negative, shifting the focus to shared decision-making between families and the infant’s healthcare provider.
The National Association of Certified Professional Midwives (NACPM) affirms that hepatitis B is a serious illness with well-documented risks to both birthing people and infants. Universal newborn vaccination has been highly effective as a population-level intervention, dramatically reducing perinatal transmission and preventing nearly all cases of infant infection. However, population-wide success does not negate the ethical obligation to ensure that individual families are supported in making informed, context-specific decisions about their care...