Q. Will most midwives accept VBAC patients for homebirths?

A. It really depends on which state you're in and whether you are talking about Certified Nurse-Midwives, Licensed Midwives or lay midwives. There are regulations in each state that govern who can do what where. For instance, in my state, Washington, my license for the Birth Center prohibits me from doing VBACs, but birth centers in many parts of the country are able to do them.

It also depends on the midwife's malpractice insurance, as some do not permit out-of-hospital birth for VBACs. The homebirth CNMs and LMs here could do VBACs until January 1 2002, when their malpractice carrier changed its rules to prohibit them.

You can check on the laws in each state at the Citzens for Midwifery website.