For years, the dream of a freestanding birth center in Roxbury has represented more than a new healthcare facility—it has symbolized hope, choice, and justice for families and communities across Boston. Today, that vision is one step closer to becoming a reality.

As a proud supporter of the Neighborhood Birth Center, BEJMA has long supported its mission to expand access to equitable, community-centered maternity care. Birth centers provide families with additional options for pregnancies while offering personalized, relationship-based care that has been shown to improve experiences and outcomes. Their expansion is an important step toward addressing persistent maternal health disparities and ensuring that families have access to safe, respectful, and culturally responsive care.

This milestone is especially meaningful to Dr. Jo-Anna Rorie, CNM, BEJMA's Interim Co-Chair and a member of the Neighborhood Birth Center's Board of Directors. Throughout her career as a certified nurse-midwife, Dr. Rorie has been a steadfast advocate for expanding access to midwifery care and birth centers. Bringing a birth center to Roxbury has long been one of her hopes, not only as a midwife, but as someone deeply committed to ensuring families have meaningful choices in where and how they give birth.

The Neighborhood Birth Center represents what is possible when communities lead, partnerships grow, and policies begin to align with the needs of families. It is the result of countless advocates, clinicians, community members, and organizations working together to transform maternal healthcare in Massachusetts.

BEJMA congratulates Nashira Baril, the Neighborhood Birth Center team, Board of Directors, community partners, and every advocate whose persistence helped make this achievement possible. While there is still work ahead, this moment reminds us that meaningful change takes vision, courage, and collective action.

To learn more about the Neighborhood Birth Center check them out here: https://neighborhoodbirthcenter.org/