The Office of Professional Regulation wants to create a new certification process for doulas as the state inches closer towards qualifying doula services for coverage under Medicaid, the federal low-income health insurance program.

Doulas are non-medical professionals who provide support during pregnancy and childbirth, as well as in postpartum care.

About half the states, and Washington D.C., already allow Medicaid coverage for doula care or are in the process of making the change.

And as support grows in Vermont to establish rules for Medicaid reimbursement for doulas, the state wants to set up a certification program to better regulate the practice.

“Essentially, across the country, doulas have never been regulated in any kind of overarching way. There’s no accreditation that’s codified,” said Sarah Teel, a doula who lives in the town of Washington and is a founder of the Doula Association of Vermont. “It’s a non-clinical role. We’re not part of the health care system, and so it hasn’t been a regulated profession.”

But as more states have recognized the advantages of qualifying doulas for Medicaid, which would open up the services to more low-income individuals, Teel said there needs to be some oversight of the profession.

“What has happened over the years with many, many states coming on board and implementing Medicaid coverage is there obviously needs to be some mechanism for the state Medicaid agency to have the assurance that this is a Medicaid provider that can meet the needs of the Medicaid population,” Teel said.

A 2022 report from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services found that labor support offered by doulas significantly decreased the likelihood of cesarean delivery and reduced the need for epidural analgesia.

Vermont lawmakers last year asked the Office of Professional Regulation to look into the most appropriate way to regulate the industry, as the state contemplates qualifying doula services for Medicaid.

OPR was looking for the “least restrictive” form of regulation, according to a recent report, and it does not recommend registration or licensure at this time.

In the end, the office settled on a voluntary certification of what it calls “community-based perinatal doulas,” which are doulas who “provide doula services to under-resourced and marginalized populations at low- or no-cost, most often through community-based agencies.”

Marti Churchill is a certified nurse midwife, and founder of the volunteer doula program at UVM Medical Center.

Churchill’s program provides free doula care to patients who don’t have the ability to pay for the service.

She said data across the country show that people from low-income backgrounds suffer more complications during pregnancy, and at the same time those populations have trouble accessing doula care.

So opening up Medicaid coverage, Churchill said, would benefit those who most need the service.

“In the rest of the world of medical care if it were a medicine or a pill it would be definitely recommended and prescribed regularly,” Churchill said. “So this is something that’s really needed.”

“We work with doulas all the time during labor and delivery,” said Bronwyn Kenny, an OB-GYN at the University of Vermont Medical Center and a member of the Vermont Medical Society. “We’re not entirely sure how or why it works, but there’s really good evidence that it does reduce things like C-section rates and postpartum depression in other states that have started to cover doula services under Medicaid.”

The Office of Professional Regulation will work with stakeholders to determine the most appropriate certification requirements.

The office also said it will stay in contact with the Department of Vermont Health Access to make sure the new certification program aligns with federal Medicaid requirements.

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Police are investigating the death of a student at Vermont’s Norwich University on Wednesday.

WPTZ reports that Northfield police are investigating the death of Norwich University Cadet Daniel Bermudez, with assistance from Vermont State Police. Details about Bermudez’s death have not yet been released. NBC10 Boston has reached out to Northfield police and state police requesting information.

Norwich University President John Broadmeadow confirmed Bermudez’s death in a statement to the school community on Thursday.

“We are heartbroken to confirm the sudden passing of our student, Cadet Daniel Bermudez ‘28 on January 15, 2025. The loss has deeply affected our entire campus community, and we are united in our grief. Our thoughts and condolences are with Daniel’s family, friends, and all those who were close to him,” the statement said.

Broadmeadow added that resources are being made available to support students, faculty and staff.

“The bonds that unite us at Norwich are strong, and we will continue to provide care and comfort to one another in the coming days and weeks,” he said. “We extend our heartfelt sympathies to Daniel’s loved ones and ask the community to keep his family and those closest to him in their thoughts and prayers. We are profoundly grateful for the support of our extended Norwich family and ask for space and understanding as we navigate this heartbreaking loss together.”

Bermudez was a member of the class of 2028, according to WPTZ. He was a second-semester freshman who had previously attended Norwalk High School in Norwalk, Connecticut. He was a criminal justice major and a member of Bravo Company.

A candlelight vigil for Bermudez was held Thursday night on the school’s campus. Details on his funeral services have not yet been released.