Two Alabama birth centers announced last week they are appealing a January court decision upholding the Alabama Department of Public Health’s hospital-like regulations on free-standing birth centers.

The two plaintiffs, Oasis Family Birthing Center in Birmingham and Alabama Birth Center in Huntsville, are being represented by the American Civil Liberties Union through their Reproductive Freedom Project. 

“Pregnant Alabamians should be able to access evidence-based midwifery care in birth centers, without burdensome, unnecessary interference from the state,” ACLU attorney Whitney White said about the case.   

In 2023, the two plaintiff birth centers sued ADPH over new regulations requiring birth centers to be under the oversight of a physician or medical director, as well as to be located within 30 minutes of a hospital with OB-GYN services. Birth centers argued that these rulings made it impossible to provide maternal care in rural areas of the state that lack hospitals, as well as undermining the work and training of midwives.

In January, the Alabama Court of Civil Appeals ruled in favor of upholding the ADPH regulations under a 1949 state law that defined hospitals. The ruling said birth centers staffed by midwives count as hospitals under the law “because they are health-care institutions ‘primarily engaged in offering to the public generally, facilities and services for … obstetrical care.’”

Birth center advocates say that this ruling discourages care from certified midwives in a state with a high infant mortality rate. Data released by ADPH in November showed Alabama’s infant mortality rate is above the national average — with Alabama’s infant mortality rate in 2024 coming in at 7.1 deaths per 1,000 live births, versus the national average of 5.5 deaths per 1,000 live births. The data also showed the infant mortality rate for Black Alabamians is disproportionately high, coming in at 11.8 deaths per 1,000 births versus the statewide rate of 5.4 deaths per 1,000 births for white parents.

Infant mortality is also highest in the state in rural counties, such as Wilcox, Butler, Conecuh and Hale counties. Studies show that only 30% of rural hospitals in the state have labor and delivery units. Additionally, rural hospitals have been closing in the state, with nine closing since 2009. 

Birth center advocates argue that they help bridge the maternal health care gap, with midwifery care that is overseen by the Alabama Board of Midwifery. 

“The midwifery care that birth centers provide is a modern, evidence-based care. Evidence and research has shown that it is safe for low-risk pregnancies, and that it can, in fact, improve outcomes for many folks,” White told Alabama Political Reporter.

The Alabama Supreme Court has yet to act on the appeal request.

Alabama top stories in brief

Former staff of suspended UA student publications file lawsuit

• Former staff members of two suspended University of Alabama student magazines filed a lawsuit against the university last week, saying that their First Amendment rights were violated by the school.
• The school suspended publication of Alice Magazine and Nineteen Fifty-Six last year, saying that the publications violated federal anti-diversity, equity and inclusion guidelines. Alice Magazine focused on women on campus, while Nineteen Fifty-Six focused on Black students and culture.
• In their complaint filed with the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Alabama, the plaintiffs argue that the suspensions count as viewpoint discrimination, saying, “These student magazines—unlike other student publications at the University—were suspended and defunded by UA because UA administrators disfavor their editorial perspectives related to race and gender.”
• Earlier this month, both magazines became independent with funding from the nonprofit Media Alumni Seeking to Highlight Equity and Diversity, known as MASTHEAD. However, lawyers representing the publications say that, while this move has helped solve the magazines’ funding issues, their ongoing suspension from campus means they are no longer afforded resources such as meeting space and faculty advisers. 

Medical Cannabis Commission violated Open Meetings Act, overpaid lawyers

• The Alabama Medical Cannabis Commission violated the Open Meetings Act multiple times during its four years of existence and overpaid legal representation by more than $200,000, new audit findings show. 
• The audit, conducted by the Alabama Department of Examiners of Public Accounts, showed AMCC paid $604,000 for legal services between May 2021 and September 2025 on a contract that should have only been for $400,000.
• Additionally, AMCC violated the Open Meetings Act by going into an executive session to select who would be awarded medical cannabis licenses and by releasing minutes that failed to accurately report the locations of meetings, the members present or if the commission went into executive session.
• AMCC will undergo another audit for the next two years.

Republican gubernatorial candidate suing Tuberville

• Ken McFeeters, a Republican running for governor, filed a lawsuit last week claiming that U.S. Sen. Tommy Tuberville is ineligible to run for governor under Alabama’s residency requirements.
• The lawsuit alleges that Tuberville, the Republican front-runner in the race for governor, has not resided in the state for the seven years required under the state constitution. 
• Tuberville’s residency was questioned during his Senate campaign and has continued to be scrutinized during his ongoing gubernatorial run. Tuberville owns a property in Florida, and he and his wife have voted in Florida as recently as 2018.
• “I am through with asking, and now I am demanding Tommy Tuberville tell people the truth, swear that he lived in Alabama for the last seven years and prove it,” McFeeters said at a press conference.
• Tuberville’s campaign maintains that he has resided in Auburn since 2019.

AL Power can charge solar fee, federal court rules

• A federal court ruled last week that Alabama Power can continue to charge an additional fee to households with rooftop solar panels. 
• Alabama Power charges customers who produce their own power using solar panels a “capacity reservation charge.” Since September 2020, this fee has been $5.41 per kilowatt of power generated. 
• Plaintiffs in the case argued the fee discourages solar panel usage in the state by levying an extra fee onto their bill. “Not only are we missing out on the bill savings that could be realized through installing rooftop solar, but we’re also missing out on opportunities for job creation and economic development,” said Christina Tidwell, a senior attorney at Southern Environmental Law Center who worked on the case.
• However, Alabama Power officials said of the ruling, “customers who rely on the grid must help pay for the grid.”
• The ruling judge did not release an opinion in this case.

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