© 2009 Canadian Medical Association or its licensors

F ew issues in maternity care remain as contested andunresolved as the debate surrounding the safety of homebirth versus hospital birth. The American, Australian and New Zealand colleges of obstetricians and gyne cologists oppose home birth. Home birth in uncomplicated pregnancies is sup-ported by the Royal College of Obstetrics and Gynaecology and the Royal College of Midwives in the United Kingdom and by the Australian, New Zealand and Canadian colleges of midwives. The Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of Canada recognizes the need for further research. The core principle of choice for women in childbirth is recognized internationally. However, most women in devel-oped countries have limited choice of where they give birth. The vast majority give birth in hospital, except in a few coun-tries such as the Netherlands, where about one-third give birth at home. Barriers to home birth include lack of funding, lack of indemnity insurance for midwives and, in some countrie