North Ogden Republican Sen. Allen Christensen, a pediatric dentist, argued his substitute bill preserves traditional midwifery in its ancient form - unregulated, like Biblical Eve, "who didn't need anything."

Christensen believes lay midwives want to practice medicine and his substitute bill is meant to block any interloping on territory reserved for doctors and nurses.

"I'm sorry they can't have their way and practice medicine," Christensen said.

But lay midwives believe Christensen's real motive is to kill Salt Lake City Democratic Rep. Jackie Biskupski's legislation, which has been refined over four years on Capitol Hill.

Midwife Suzanne Smith called Christensen's speech lauding traditional midwifery "a legislative ploy."

As originally written, Biskupski's bill set education requirements, included a list of medicines midwives could administer - everything from antibiotic eye ointment for the baby to pitocin to stop a mother's hemorrhaging - spelled out circumstances when mothers and babies must be transported to the hospital and provided liability protections for doctors who care for midwives' patients in emergencies.

Christensen's substitute strips out virtually all those requirements.

And he insists it is a better bill, noting traditional midwives who resist regulation support the language, along with the Utah Nurses Association, the Osteopathic Association and the Intermountain Pediatric Association.

He held up a memo from the attorney general's office stating that traditional midwifery is legal in Utah, despite the arrest of a St. George midwife four years ago.

The time "activist midwives" have spent on Biskupski's bill doesn't matter, Christensen said.

"In California, they've been working very hard for 25 years to legalize marijuana. It still is not a good idea," he said.

Senators voted 15-13 to adopt Christensen's language and the bill was held for further consideration.

While Christensen hopes to push his version of the legislation through today, Biskupski also plans to try to replace his substitute with her original language.