---
type: "Bill"
title: "AN ACT relating to maternal health and declaring an emergency."
description: "Create a new section of KRS Chapter 216B to define \"freestanding birthing center\"; require the Cabinet for Health and Family Services to promulgate administrative regulations to establish licensure standards for freestanding birthing centers; establish criteria for a medical director; establish requirements for obtaining written informed consent; require a written patient transfer agreement with a hospital that provides obstetric services; require a written patient transfer agreement with an emergency medical transportation service; exempt a center with no more than four beds from certificate-of-need requirements for establishing and licensing a freestanding birthing center; state intent not to limit or expand liability of a center or health care provider or facility; require medical malpractice insurance for freestanding birthing centers; prohibit abortions in freestanding birthing centers; amend KRS 216B.015 to include freestanding birthing centers in the definition of \"health facility\"; amend KRS 216B.020, 196.173, 211.122, 211.647, 211.660, 213.046, 214.155, 214.565, 214.567, 214.569, 216.2920, 216.2921, 216.2923, 216.2925, 216.2927, and 216.2970 to conform; require the cabinet to promulgate updated administrative regulations by December 1, 2025; provide that the Act may be cited as the Mary Carol Akers Birth Centers Act."
jurisdiction: "us/states/ky"
legislature: "Kentucky General Assembly"
session: "2025RS"
identifier: "HB 90"
citation: "Kentucky HB 90 (2025RS)"
classification: ["bill"]
subjects: ["Administrative Regulations and Proceedings", "Health and Medical Services", "Hospitals and Nursing Homes", "Licensing", "Nurses", "Physicians and Practitioners", "Reproductive Issues", "Short Titles and Popular Names"]
status: "enacted"
primary_sponsors: []
version_count: 3
action_count: 50
vote_count: 5
first_action: "2025-01-07T05:00:00+00:00"
last_action: "2025-03-28T04:00:00+00:00"
source: "openstates"
source_identifier: "ocd-bill/7d046645-9be7-4064-ba52-4300b3b73080"
source_url: "https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/record/25RS/hb90.html"
source_hash: "80e7c5eae93e078e3c1a935c4696cc66ac8d5c6d1fd9a72dbd96fb90e12e0645"
vintage: "2026-07-01"
source_snapshot: "https://data.openstates.org/daily/2026-07-01/public.pgdump"
retrieved_at: "2026-07-06"
confidence: "reported"
tags: ["legislation", "bill", "us-ky"]
---

# Kentucky HB 90 (2025RS) — AN ACT relating to maternal health and declaring an emergency.

Create a new section of KRS Chapter 216B to define "freestanding birthing center"; require the Cabinet for Health and Family Services to promulgate administrative regulations to establish licensure standards for freestanding birthing centers; establish criteria for a medical director; establish requirements for obtaining written informed consent; require a written patient transfer agreement with a hospital that provides obstetric services; require a written patient transfer agreement with an emergency medical transportation service; exempt a center with no more than four beds from certificate-of-need requirements for establishing and licensing a freestanding birthing center; state intent not to limit or expand liability of a center or health care provider or facility; require medical malpractice insurance for freestanding birthing centers; prohibit abortions in freestanding birthing centers; amend KRS 216B.015 to include freestanding birthing centers in the definition of "health facility"; amend KRS 216B.020, 196.173, 211.122, 211.647, 211.660, 213.046, 214.155, 214.565, 214.567, 214.569, 216.2920, 216.2921, 216.2923, 216.2925, 216.2927, and 216.2970 to conform; require the cabinet to promulgate updated administrative regulations by December 1, 2025; provide that the Act may be cited as the Mary Carol Akers Birth Centers Act.

## Version chain

The bill's text revisions, in order — the diff chain from filing to enrollment.

1. **Introduced** (filed) — [source](https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/recorddocuments/bill/25RS/hb90/orig_bill.pdf)
2. **Acts Chapter 121** (committee substitute) — [source](https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/law/acts/25RS/documents/0121.pdf)
3. **Current/Final** (committee substitute) — [source](https://apps.legislature.ky.gov/recorddocuments/bill/25RS/hb90/bill.pdf)

## Votes

- Override Veto Final Passage HB 90 — **31–7** (pass) · lower
- Final Passage — **77–20** (pass) · lower
- Pass — **82–9** (pass) · lower
- Final Passage — **74–17** (pass) · lower
- PASS HB 90 W/ scs1 scta1 — **29–0** (pass) · lower

## Timeline

The legislative action history — every referral, reading, and vote.

- **2025-01-07T05:00:00+00:00** introduced in House `introduction`
- **2025-01-07T05:00:00+00:00** to Committee on Committees (H) `referral-committee`
- **2025-02-04T05:00:00+00:00** to Licensing, Occupations, & Administrative Regulations (H) `referral-committee`
- **2025-02-28T05:00:00+00:00** taken from Licensing, Occupations, & Administrative Regulations (H)
- **2025-02-28T05:00:00+00:00** 1st reading `reading-1`
- **2025-02-28T05:00:00+00:00** returned to Licensing, Occupations, & Administrative Regulations (H)
- **2025-03-04T05:00:00+00:00** taken from Licensing, Occupations, & Administrative Regulations (H)
- **2025-03-04T05:00:00+00:00** 2nd reading `reading-2`
- **2025-03-04T05:00:00+00:00** returned to Licensing, Occupations, & Administrative Regulations (H)
- **2025-03-05T05:00:00+00:00** reported favorably, to Rules `committee-passage`
- **2025-03-06T05:00:00+00:00** taken from Rules
- **2025-03-06T05:00:00+00:00** placed in the Orders of the Day
- **2025-03-06T05:00:00+00:00** 3rd reading, passed 82-9 `passage, reading-3`
- **2025-03-06T05:00:00+00:00** received in Senate
- **2025-03-06T05:00:00+00:00** to Committee on Committees (S) `referral-committee`
- **2025-03-06T05:00:00+00:00** taken from Committee on Committees (S)
- **2025-03-06T05:00:00+00:00** 1st reading `reading-1`
- **2025-03-06T05:00:00+00:00** returned to Committee on Committees (S)
- **2025-03-07T05:00:00+00:00** to Licensing & Occupations (S) `referral-committee`
- **2025-03-07T05:00:00+00:00** taken from Licensing & Occupations (S)
- **2025-03-07T05:00:00+00:00** 2nd reading `reading-2`
- **2025-03-07T05:00:00+00:00** returned to Licensing & Occupations (S)
- **2025-03-13T04:00:00+00:00** reported favorably, to Rules with Committee Substitute (1) and Committee Amendment (1-title) `committee-passage`
- **2025-03-13T04:00:00+00:00** posted for passage in the Regular Orders of the Day for Thursday, March 13, 2025
- **2025-03-13T04:00:00+00:00** 3rd reading, passed 29-0-5 with Committee Substitute (1) and Committee Amendment (1-title) `passage, reading-3`
- **2025-03-13T04:00:00+00:00** received in House
- **2025-03-13T04:00:00+00:00** to Rules (H) `referral-committee`
- **2025-03-13T04:00:00+00:00** taken from Rules (H)
- **2025-03-13T04:00:00+00:00** posted for passage for concurrence in Senate Committee Substitute (1) and Committee Amendment (1-title)
- **2025-03-13T04:00:00+00:00** House concurred in Senate Committee Substitute (1) and Committee Amendment (1-title)
- **2025-03-13T04:00:00+00:00** passed 74-17 `passage`
- **2025-03-13T04:00:00+00:00** enrolled, signed by Speaker of the House `passage`
- **2025-03-13T04:00:00+00:00** enrolled, signed by President of the Senate `passage`
- **2025-03-13T04:00:00+00:00** delivered to Governor
- **2025-03-25T04:00:00+00:00** Vetoed `executive-veto`
- **2025-03-27T04:00:00+00:00** received in House
- **2025-03-27T04:00:00+00:00** to Rules (H) `referral-committee`
- **2025-03-27T04:00:00+00:00** taken from Rules
- **2025-03-27T04:00:00+00:00** posted for consideration of Governor's veto
- **2025-03-27T04:00:00+00:00** veto overridden `veto-override-passage`
- **2025-03-27T04:00:00+00:00** passed 77-20 `passage`
- **2025-03-27T04:00:00+00:00** received in Senate
- **2025-03-27T04:00:00+00:00** to Rules (S) `referral-committee`
- **2025-03-27T04:00:00+00:00** posted for passage for consideration of Governor's veto
- **2025-03-27T04:00:00+00:00** veto overridden `veto-override-passage`
- **2025-03-27T04:00:00+00:00** passed 31-7 `passage`
- **2025-03-28T04:00:00+00:00** received in House
- **2025-03-28T04:00:00+00:00** enrolled, signed by Speaker of the House `passage`
- **2025-03-28T04:00:00+00:00** enrolled, signed by President of the Senate `passage`
- **2025-03-28T04:00:00+00:00** delivered to Secretary of State (Acts Ch. 121) `became-law`

## Source

OpenStates / OpenCivicData bulk snapshot [2026-07-01](https://data.openstates.org/daily/2026-07-01/public.pgdump); origin `ocd-bill/7d046645-9be7-4064-ba52-4300b3b73080`. Confidence: reported (aggregated from official Kentucky legislature records).