Amendment ID: S2899-17

Amendment 17

Patient Bill of Rights

Ms. Miranda, Ms. Edwards and Messrs. Payano, Oliveira and Gomez move that the proposed new text be amended by adding the following section:-

SECTION X. Chapter 111 of the General Laws is hereby amended by inserting in section 70E after “Every patient or resident of a facility shall have the right:”: (p) to have their doula’s continuous presence during labor and delivery. Facilities shall not place an undue burden on a patient’s doula’s access to clinical labor and delivery settings, and shall not arbitrarily exclude a patient’s doula from such settings. A patient’s doula shall not count towards the patient’s support person limitations imposed by the medical facility in which the patient gives birth.