Midwife Bus rolls into Orange County, offers care to uninsured and under-insured women

ORLANDO, Fla. — Uninsured and under-insured women in prenatal and postpartum care in Orange County can now receive care from the Midwife Bus, a maternity health center on wheels where no one is denied services.

The Midwife Bus is a 40-foot retired bloodmobile that was converted into a fully equipped mobile maternity clinic.

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Licensed midwife Brooke Schmoe began offering care in 2020 after a grant from the Orlando Health Community Grant Program provided Schmoe with startup costs and the necessary funding to get the bus operational.

According to a news release, Schmoe initially provided services for patients in Osceola County which has the highest percentage of Central Florida women without health insurance.

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Midwife Bus rolls into Orange County, offers care to uninsured and under-insured women (Orlando Health)

“So many important milestones for the mother and the baby are measured in the months before the due date,” said Schmoe. “Limited-to-zero healthcare access during pregnancy means that potentially dangerous conditions, like pre-eclampsia and gestational diabetes, are less likely to be caught and managed. This can spell disaster for both mother and baby.”

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The bus can be found parked every Monday at the Grand Avenue Neighborhood Center located at 800 Grand Street, Orlando, FL, 32805.

This is the bus’s fourth location and was chosen to give patients in the Parramore community with limited or no transportation resources a better opportunity to get to and from the mobile clinic.

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With the addition of a new clinician, the Midwife Bus’s expanded services now span two counties, providing crucial care to women in several communities.

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