# Nurse Midwives

US SOC code 29-1161. Markdown version of https://futurehistory.earth/timeline/29-1161

Also called: Nurse midwife, Certified nurse midwife, CNM, Midwife, Certified midwife.

## In brief

In May 2025, [BLS](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm25nat.zip) counted **7,920** US nurse midwives, with median pay of **$134,040** a year. Of the BLS counts since 2012, the highest was **8,280**, in May 2024, close to the May 2025 count. The earliest figure here is [an estimate](https://www.midwifeschooling.com/blog/history-of-the-ancm-and-amcb/) of **124** from 1955, not measured the same way as today's count. The last full technology era for nurse midwives: AI electronic fetal monitoring and remote prenatal surveillance, 2018 to 2023. PeriWatch Vigilance deployments reduced missed category II-III FHR pattern events and cognitive load on multi-patient labor assignments.

## What the sources say

### Official outlook

BLS projects employment to grow 11.5% from 2025 to 2035. Source: [BLS Employment Projections 2025-35](https://data.bls.gov/projections/nationalMatrix?queryParams=29-1161&ioType=o).

### AI exposure studies

- **29.3%** of this job's tasks are exposed to large language models. Not a forecast of job losses. [Eloundou and others, 2023](https://github.com/openai/GPTs-are-GPTs/blob/main/data/occ_level.csv)

Data as of BLS OEWS May 2025; BLS Employment Projections 2025-35. BLS publishes these counts as yearly survey snapshots and cautions against reading them as a precise trend. In May 2021 BLS changed how it estimates these counts (a model-based method using three years of survey data) and moved fully to the 2018 occupation codes, so part of a change across 2021 can come from the method rather than the work.

## Nurse Midwives employment and pay by year

- On record since: 1925
- Latest US employment: 7,920 (May 2025). Source: BLS OEWS May 2025 [3]
- Latest US median pay: $134,040 (May 2025). Source: BLS OEWS May 2025 [6]
- Outlook: +11.5% by 2035. Source: BLS Employment Projections 2025-35 [20]

### All 20 years of cited US data

| Year | US employment | Annual pay (median unless marked) | Source |
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 1955 | 124 (estimate) | n/a | Est., How ACNM and AMCB Shaped… [1] |
| 1975 | 860 (estimate) | n/a | Est., ACNM historical summary via… [1] |
| 1977 | 1,000 (estimate) | $14,000 (estimate) | Est., PMC1619506 [2] |
| 1984 | 2,534 (estimate) | n/a | Est., ACNM historical summary via… [1] |
| 2000 | 7,000 (estimate) | $67,000 (estimate) | Est., ACNM historical summary via… (employment) [1]; Est., BLS OOH (pay) [5] |
| 2010 | n/a | $87,000 (estimate) | Est., BLS OOH [5] |
| 2012 | 5,710 | $89,600 | BLS OEWS May 2012 [3] |
| 2013 | 5,460 | $92,290 | BLS OEWS May 2013 [3] |
| 2014 | 5,110 | $96,970 | BLS OEWS May 2014 [3] |
| 2015 | 7,430 | $92,510 | BLS OEWS May 2015 [3] |
| 2016 | 6,270 | $99,770 | BLS OEWS May 2016 [3] |
| 2017 | 6,530 | $100,590 | BLS OEWS May 2017 [3] |
| 2018 | 6,250 | $103,770 | BLS OEWS May 2018 [3] |
| 2019 | 6,930 | $105,030 | BLS OEWS May 2019 [3] |
| 2020 | 7,120 | $111,130 | BLS OEWS May 2020 [3] |
| 2021 | 7,750 | $112,830 | BLS OEWS May 2021 [3] |
| 2022 | 7,950 | $120,880 | BLS OEWS May 2022 [3] |
| 2023 | 6,960 | $129,650 | BLS OEWS May 2023 [3] |
| 2024 | 8,280 | $128,790 | BLS OEWS May 2024 [3] |
| 2025 | 7,920 | $134,040 | BLS OEWS May 2025 [3] |

## Sources (72)

### Employment series

1. [How ACNM and AMCB Shaped Nurse-Midwifery in the U.S. (midwifeschooling.com): ACNM incorporated November 7, 1955 with 124 founding members](https://www.midwifeschooling.com/blog/history-of-the-ancm-and-amcb/), Midwife Schooling (ACNM historical summary)
2. [PMC1619506 — American Nurse-Midwifery Practice in 1976-1977: Reflections of 50 years of Growth and Development (AJPH 70:9, 1980)](https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC1619506/), American Journal of Public Health / PubMed Central
3. BLS OEWS, national cross-industry estimates (flat file), Bureau of Labor Statistics. Editions: [2012](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm12nat.zip), [2013](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm13nat.zip), [2014](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm14nat.zip), [2015](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm15nat.zip), [2016](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm16nat.zip), [2017](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm17nat.zip), [2018](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm18nat.zip), [2019](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm19nat.zip), [2020](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm20nat.zip), [2021](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm21nat.zip), [2022](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm22nat.zip), [2023](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm23nat.zip), [2024](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm24nat.zip), [2025](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm25nat.zip)

### Wage series

4. [PMC1619506 — American Nurse-Midwifery Practice in 1976-1977 (AJPH 1980): survey context for CNM compensation in clinical practice settings; wage estimate constructed from federal GS-11 scale and hospital RN median](https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC1619506/), American Journal of Public Health / PubMed Central
5. [BLS OOH — Nurse Anesthetists, Nurse Midwives, and Nurse Practitioners: career and wage overview (historical context for 2000 CNM salary positioning)](https://www.bls.gov/ooh/healthcare/nurse-anesthetists-nurse-midwives-and-nurse-practitioners.htm), Bureau of Labor Statistics
6. BLS OEWS, national cross-industry estimates (flat file), Bureau of Labor Statistics. Editions: [2012](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm12nat.zip), [2013](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm13nat.zip), [2014](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm14nat.zip), [2015](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm15nat.zip), [2016](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm16nat.zip), [2017](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm17nat.zip), [2018](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm18nat.zip), [2019](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm19nat.zip), [2020](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm20nat.zip), [2021](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm21nat.zip), [2022](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm22nat.zip), [2023](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm23nat.zip), [2025](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm25nat.zip)
7. [BLS OEWS May 2024, national cross-industry estimates (flat file)](https://www.bls.gov/oes/special-requests/oesm24nat.zip), U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics

### Tool eras

8. [Truth About Nursing — Mary Breckinridge: FNS history, horseback delivery statistics, 17,053 births / 11 maternal deaths in first 50 years](https://www.truthaboutnursing.org/press/pioneers/breckinridge.html), Truth About Nursing
9. [NLM Circulating Now — "The Forgotten Frontier: Nursing Done in Wild Places": FNS nurse-midwives, horseback outreach, standardized bag equipment, 1920s-1940s](https://circulatingnow.nlm.nih.gov/2018/09/20/the-forgotten-frontier-nursing-done-in-wild-places/), National Library of Medicine
10. [ob-efm.com — History of Fetal Monitoring: first commercial EFM sold 1968; by 1979 at least half of laboring women monitored electronically](https://ob-efm.com/efm-basics/history/), Electronic Fetal Monitoring History resource
11. [OHSU Women's Health — A Brief History of Midwifery in America: 1960 milestone, 97% hospital births; medicalization context](https://www.ohsu.edu/womens-health/brief-history-midwifery-america), Oregon Health and Science University
12. [midwifeschooling.com — ACNM and AMCB history: first CNM certification exam 1971; ACNM membership 1984 = 2,534](https://www.midwifeschooling.com/blog/history-of-the-ancm-and-amcb/), Midwife Schooling
13. [midwiferytoday.com — History of Midwifery and Childbirth in America Timeline: 1994 data, 85% EFM usage; 1995, 31 jurisdictions with CNM prescriptive authority (up from 14 in 1984)](https://www.midwiferytoday.com/web-article/history-midwifery-childbirth-america-time-line/), Midwifery Today
14. [PubMed 26382028 — Regulation of Certified Nurse-Midwife Scope of Practice: Change in the Professional Practice Index, 2000 to 2015](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/26382028/), PubMed / Journal of Midwifery and Women's Health
15. [PeriGen — PeriWatch Vigilance: FDA-cleared continuous AI EFM interpretation; Patterns 3.0 FDA clearance February 2025, expanding to 32 weeks gestational age](https://perigen.com/periwatch-vigilance/), PeriGen
16. [Babyscripts — myJourney: remote prenatal BP monitoring, reduces in-person visits 12-14 to 4-6 per pregnancy; deployed at Froedtert and MCW, Berkshire Health Systems](https://babyscripts.com/), Babyscripts
17. [Microsoft — Dragon Copilot (formerly Nuance DAX Copilot), rebranded March 2025; 750+ US health systems; 60-70% documentation time reduction; extended to nurses and APRNs October 2025](https://news.microsoft.com/source/2025/10/16/microsoft-extends-ai-advancements-in-dragon-copilot-to-nurses-and-partners-to-enhance-patient-care/), Microsoft
18. [Mirvie / BusinessWire April 2025 — Encompass RNA platform: 91% sensitivity for preterm preeclampsia at 17.5-22 weeks; 99.7% NPV; Nature Communications publication; 9,000-pregnancy validation](https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20250408885501/en/Mirvie-Announces-Results-from-Largest-Molecular-Study-in-Pregnancy-and-Clinical-Validation-of-Simple-Blood-Test-to-Predict-Risk-for-Preeclampsia-Months-Before-Symptoms), Mirvie / BusinessWire
19. [ACNM — Appropriate Use of Technology in Childbirth (updated June 30, 2025): technology is an adjunct; clinical judgment remains the CNM's professional responsibility](https://midwife.org/positions-statements-library/), American College of Nurse-Midwives

### Forecasts and exposure studies

20. [BLS Employment Projections 2025-35, National Employment Matrix: 29-1161 Nurse midwives (2025: 8.2 thousand; 2035: 9.1 thousand; +11.5%)](https://data.bls.gov/projections/nationalMatrix?queryParams=29-1161&ioType=o), Bureau of Labor Statistics
21. [Eloundou, Manning, Mishkin & Rock (2023), "GPTs are GPTs", occupation-level exposure data occ\_level.csv (O\*NET-SOC 29-1161.00, human-rated β 0.293)](https://github.com/openai/GPTs-are-GPTs/blob/main/data/occ_level.csv), OpenAI

### Historical notes

22. [Midwifery Today — History of Midwifery and Childbirth in America Timeline: 1716, New York City midwife licensing](https://www.midwiferytoday.com/web-article/history-midwifery-childbirth-america-time-line/), Midwifery Today
23. [OHSU Women's Health — A Brief History of Midwifery in America: Flexner Report 1910, later characterized as "racist, sexist, and classist"; birth medicalization context](https://www.ohsu.edu/womens-health/brief-history-midwifery-america), Oregon Health and Science University
24. [Wikipedia — Midwives in the United States: Sheppard-Towner Act 1921; federal survey of 42,627 predominantly Black midwives in the early 1920s; state licensing campaigns](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Midwives_in_the_United_States), Wikipedia
25. [Truth About Nursing — Mary Breckinridge: FNS founding 1925, first baby September 1925, 17,053 births / 11 maternal deaths](https://www.truthaboutnursing.org/press/pioneers/breckinridge.html), Truth About Nursing
26. [Frontier Nursing University — A Century of Stories: Mary Breckinridge and first American midwifery school, New York, 1932](https://frontier.edu/news/a-century-of-stories-mary-breckinridge/), Frontier Nursing University
27. [midwifeschooling.com — ACNM incorporated November 7, 1955, with 124 founding members; first president Hattie Hemschemeyer](https://www.midwifeschooling.com/blog/history-of-the-ancm-and-amcb/), Midwife Schooling
28. [ScienceDirect abstract — Trends in nurse-midwifery: Results of the 1988 ACNM division of research mini-survey (J Nurse-Midwifery 1990)](https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/009121829090111H), Journal of Nurse-Midwifery / ScienceDirect
29. [ACNM Midwifery Workforce Study (2024): pandemic-era workforce stress; telehealth expansion; CNM shortage context](https://midwife.org/midwifery-workforce-study/), American College of Nurse-Midwives
30. [Thumm et al. (2023), American Midwifery Certification Board Certification Demographic and Employment Data, 2016 to 2020 (J Midwifery Womens Health)](https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/37283414/), Journal of Midwifery and Women's Health

### Predecessors & successors

31. [OHSU Women's Health — A Brief History of Midwifery in America: traditional midwives attended nearly all births before 1900; medicalization and licensing campaigns progressively displaced lay midwives](https://www.ohsu.edu/womens-health/brief-history-midwifery-america), Oregon Health and Science University
32. [PMC1619506 — American Nurse-Midwifery Practice in 1976-77: nurse-midwifery introduced 1925 as a pathway for public health nurses to address rural and urban maternal care gaps](https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC1619506/), American Journal of Public Health
33. [Georgetown nursing history — first CNM certification exam 1971; MSN requirement phased in from 9-month certificate programs by 1980](https://nursing.georgetown.edu/special-story/history-of-nurse-midwifery-program-reveals-a-lasting-commitment-to-community-care-and-political-advocacy/), Georgetown University School of Nursing

### Present-day analysis

- [O\*NET 30.3 — Nurse Midwives (29-1161.00): tasks, work context, education data, median wage $128,790; 94% very close physical proximity; 78% extremely serious error consequences](https://www.onetonline.org/link/summary/29-1161.00), accessed 2026-05-24
- [BLS OOH — Nurse Anesthetists, Nurse Midwives, and Nurse Practitioners: 35% projected growth 2024-2034; ~32,700 annual openings; median CNM wage $128,790](https://www.bls.gov/ooh/healthcare/nurse-anesthetists-nurse-midwives-and-nurse-practitioners.htm), accessed 2026-05-24
- [PeriGen — PeriWatch Vigilance: only FDA-cleared continuous AI fetal heart rate pattern interpretation in the U.S.; supervised ML; 3/5-tier color-coded FHR classification; FDA-cleared labor progress curve; EMR-agnostic](https://perigen.com/periwatch-vigilance/), accessed 2026-05-24
- [PeriGen — Patterns 3.0 FDA Clearance Feb 18 2025: expands AI fetal monitoring from 36 to 32 weeks gestational age; covers antepartum and intrapartum high-risk preterm monitoring](https://perigen.com/news/perigen-receives-fda-clearance-for-patterns-3-0-expanding-ai-powered-fetal-monitoring-to-32-weeks/), accessed 2026-05-24
- [Mirvie / BusinessWire Apr 2025 — Encompass blood test: 91% sensitivity for preterm preeclampsia at 17.5–22 weeks; 99.7% NPV; Nature Communications publication; 9,000-pregnancy validation study](https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20250408885501/en/Mirvie-Announces-Results-from-Largest-Molecular-Study-in-Pregnancy-and-Clinical-Validation-of-Simple-Blood-Test-to-Predict-Risk-for-Preeclampsia-Months-Before-Symptoms), accessed 2026-05-24
- [ACNM — Appropriate Use of Technology in Childbirth (updated Jun 30 2025): technology augments, does not replace, midwife clinical judgment](https://midwife.org/positions-statements-library/), accessed 2026-05-24
- [PMC — Artificial Intelligence in Midwifery: A Scoping Review (Healthcare 2025, PMC12026693): no purpose-built AI tools for midwifery as of 2025; EFM decision support and ambient documentation are primary AI touchpoints; midwives prioritize empathy and presence as irreplaceable](https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC12026693/), accessed 2026-05-24
- [IntelyCare / nurse.org 2025-2026 — CNM salary $128,110–$140,000 median; top 10% earn $225,000+; projected shortage of 22,000 maternity care providers by 2050](https://credenzahealth.com/career-advice/nurse-midwife-salary-facts-figures-and-salaries-by-state), accessed 2026-05-24
- [Eloundou et al. 2024 — GPTs are GPTs (Science): occupational LLM exposure framework](https://arxiv.org/abs/2303.10130), accessed 2026-05-24
- [Microsoft Dragon Copilot (formerly Nuance DAX Copilot) — rebranded March 2025; deployed at 750+ U.S. health systems; 60–70% documentation time reduction; ICD-10 suggestion GA October 2025; covers all licensed APRNs including CNMs](https://news.microsoft.com/source/2025/10/16/microsoft-extends-ai-advancements-in-dragon-copilot-to-nurses-and-partners-to-enhance-patient-care/), accessed 2026-05-24
- [PatientNotes AI — SOAP notes for Nurse Midwives: voice-to-text obstetric terminology conversion; cervical changes, fetal positioning, and labor interventions captured in real-time documentation without interrupting hands-on care](https://www.patientnotes.app/professions/nurse-midwife), accessed 2026-05-24
- [Frontiers Digital Health 2025 — Development of novel AI algorithm for interpreting FHR and uterine activity: even among experts, only moderate agreement on FHR strip interpretation; AI supports consistent classification](https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/digital-health/articles/10.3389/fdgth.2025.1638424/full), accessed 2026-05-24
- [Babyscripts — myJourney: BP cuff syncs to EHR; configurable risk-level workflows; reduces prenatal visits 12–14 → 4–6 per term for low-risk patients; deployed at Froedtert & MCW, Berkshire Health Systems](https://babyscripts.com/), accessed 2026-05-24
- [Froedtert & MCW — Babyscripts myJourney: internet/cellular-enabled BP monitoring for prenatal patients; care manager RN support and protocol-based escalation](https://www.froedtert.com/birth/babyscripts), accessed 2026-05-24

How to read these figures: https://futurehistory.earth/methodology. Every figure links to its own source; gaps stay gaps.