The State Division of Consumer Affairs has published draft rules this week to mandate bias training for physicians, nurses, and midwives who provide perinatal care. The training aims to address prejudices and stereotypes that affect maternal health.
With the publication of the draft rule on Tuesday in the New Jersey Register, the proposal enters a 60-day public comment period ending on September 13. A similar rule for physician assistants was published on June 17, with its public comment period closing on August 16.
Licensees of the State Board of Medical Examiners and the New Jersey Board of Nursing are already required to complete continuing education credit hours for biennial licensure. Under new rules proposed by both boards, those providing perinatal treatment must complete one training hour on explicit and implicit bias.
Health Commissioner Kaitlan Baston, M.D., noted that systemic racism and implicit bias have contributed to racial and ethnic disparities in preventable pregnancy-related deaths. "Requiring implicit and explicit bias training is another step in the right direction to help close the gap in maternal healthcare quality and to ensure safe and equitable maternal outcomes," Baston said.
The proposed rules align with recommendations from the Nurture NJ Maternal and Infant Health Strategic Plan, which advocates for continuing education requirements on implicit bias for licensed health professionals.
The continuing education course must cover topics such as identifying unconscious biases when providing perinatal care, barriers to inclusion, effects of historical exclusion of minority communities, cultural identity across marginalized groups, effective communication across diverse identities, reproductive justice, power dynamics' impact on bias, inequities in perinatal care contributing to pregnancy-related deaths, corrective measures at various levels, and a review of the New Jersey Maternal Mortality Review Committee's annual report.
Following the public comment period's closure, a summary of comments and responses will be published in a Notice of Adoption expected in 2025. The final rules will take effect 90 days after this publication.
For more information on submitting comments or viewing the proposed rules:
- For Physician Assistants – 56 N.J.R. 1067(a)
- For Physicians – 56 N.J.R. 1230(a)
- For Nurses – 56 N.J.R. 1231(a)
- For Midwives – 56 N.J.R. 1228(b)
