"Hospitals = illness. Pregnancy is not an illness"
That is correct, but for a significant minority of women child birth is a life threatening event.
I just don't get this whole "It's natural, so it must be best" viewpoint.
Cancer is natural, heart attacks are natural, swine flu is natural. Humans have made many scientific advances and I for one am happy to use as much of it as I can. Hospitals for child birth, vaccines for my children.
Up to 20% of women used to die in child birth, legs used to be amputated and teeth pulled without anaesthetic, polio crippled, measles killed and rubella caused many birth defects. Modern medicine has solved these issues.
Builders need insurance, so requiring midwives to have insurance seems a reasonable step. If you still want a home birth, go ahead, but you will have to do it without a midwife. There seems to be a push to get me, as a taxpayer, to subsidise insurance for home births. I disagree with this, just as i disagree with funding for private schools. The Government provides a good health service and good public education. If you don't like them, fine, but don't expect me to put my hand in my pocket to subsidise your choice.
