Joint Commission Advanced Certification in Perinatal Care (ACPC) is a certification for hospital obstetric programs that, in the Joint Commission's words, "provides a framework to help organizations drive improvements in clinical outcomes for mothers and babies." This page is for hospital obstetric program leaders who are forming a program, setting a certification objective or keeping a certified program aligned. Integral Healthcare Solutions (IHS) documents your perinatal program's governance, escalation and training evidence; your obstetric leaders own the protocols.

Last reviewed: October 2026.

What is Joint Commission perinatal care certification?

The Joint Commission describes ACPC this way: it "addresses a growing need for appropriate obstetric care, helping ensure a multidisciplinary approach is followed when developing a patient-centered plan of care that utilizes evidence-based assessment tools" (Joint Commission, Disease-Specific Care). ACPC is an advanced certification. The Joint Commission's perinatal page states: "When seeking an advanced certification, you must meet the core requirements of standards, clinical practice guidelines, and clinically-specific requirements" (Joint Commission, Perinatal Care).

The review itself is set out in the Advanced Certification in Perinatal Care Review Process Guide 2026 (Joint Commission, ACPC Review Process Guide 2026). Its template agenda is headed "Advanced Certification in Perinatal Care Agenda / One or Two Reviewers for Two Days." The pages we reviewed did not give the exact title or edition of the ACPC standards document itself, so your team should confirm the current edition in the materials it obtains from the Joint Commission before work starts.

The Joint Commission runs two related perinatal programs:

• Outcomes-Driven Certification in Perinatal Care (ODC-PC). The Joint Commission says ODC-PC "takes this effort one step further by incorporating patient-focused outcomes measures and providing data-based benchmarking for participating organizations" (Disease-Specific Care page).
• Maternal Levels of Care Verification. The Joint Commission's comparison grid (dated March 2024) sets eligibility as: "The perinatal care program is provided within a Joint Commission–accredited hospital or critical access hospital, or it is provided within an organization that is compliant with applicable federal laws, including applicable Medicare Conditions of Participation" (Joint Commission, Maternal Levels of Care comparison grid).

Who needs it and what triggers it

The buyer is a hospital's obstetric program leadership. The triggers below each tie to a Joint Commission source:

• Considering a first application. The Joint Commission states: "We offer a free 90-day trial of the certifications standards for organizations who are considering certification but have not yet applied" (Disease-Specific Care page).
• A first on-site review. "If this is your program's first time through the certification process you will receive a thirty (30) day advance notice of your on-site review date(s)" (ACPC Review Process Guide 2026).
• Adopting performance measures. On its Disease-Specific Care page the Joint Commission states that "Joint Commission-certified programs and organizations seeking initial certification are required to adopt a set of standardized performance measures," with monthly data submitted quarterly through the Certification Measure Information Process (CMIP) (Disease-Specific Care page). The ACPC measure list was not among the pages we reviewed.
• Moving to outcomes-driven certification. "When seeking the outcomes-driven certification, you must be a Joint Commission-accredited organization and provide data on a specific measure set based largely on patient outcomes" (Perinatal Care page).
• The mid-cycle check. "A mid-point (intra-cycle) evaluation of a program's performance measurement activities and standards compliance will be conducted via conference call with a Joint Commission reviewer" (ACPC Review Process Guide 2026).

How IHS helps

IHS works on the documentation side of certification. The process:

1. Gap assessment. IHS reads your current structure and records against the ACPC requirements your hospital holds.
2. Questionnaires. IHS sends questionnaires on governance, escalation, transfers and training.
3. Document and evidence mapping. IHS builds a crosswalk from each requirement to the evidence that shows it is met.
4. Drafting. IHS drafts multidisciplinary governance documents, escalation and transfer documentation, training records and outcome-review procedures, built from protocols your obstetric leaders approve.
5. Mock review. IHS walks the file against the Review Process Guide agenda and lists what is missing.
6. Readiness support. IHS drafts responses to findings for your hospital to submit.

What you supply: the ACPC requirements, your obstetric protocols, drill and training records, outcome data, and the approval of your clinicians.

The limit: obstetric protocols and the interpretation of outcomes are clinical work. IHS documents them; it does not write or judge them. Your hospital applies, submits every document and handles every exchange with the Joint Commission.

What to have ready

Each item ties to a Joint Commission page or document read on 2 October 2026.

• A decision on the program you are pursuing: ACPC, ODC-PC or Maternal Levels of Care Verification (Disease-Specific Care page; comparison grid).
• The current ACPC requirements, with the edition confirmed, covering the "standards, clinical practice guidelines, and clinically-specific requirements" an advanced certification needs (Perinatal Care page).
• Records that show "a multidisciplinary approach is followed when developing a patient-centered plan of care that utilizes evidence-based assessment tools" (Disease-Specific Care page).
• A performance measure plan: data collected monthly for each measure and submitted quarterly through CMIP, with "Threshold criteria" to be met "for applicable measures at initial certification and recertification" (Disease-Specific Care page).
• For ODC-PC: confirmation of your Joint Commission accreditation and a way to "provide data on a specific measure set based largely on patient outcomes" (Perinatal Care page).
• For Maternal Levels of Care Verification: evidence that the program sits in a Joint Commission-accredited hospital or critical access hospital, or in an organization "compliant with applicable federal laws, including applicable Medicare Conditions of Participation" (comparison grid, March 2024).
• Leaders and staff who can be scheduled on 30 days' notice for a first review (ACPC Review Process Guide 2026).
• A two-day review plan built around the guide's template agenda for "One or Two Reviewers for Two Days" (ACPC Review Process Guide 2026).
• A named person with access to Joint Commission Connect, where "The application is submitted" (Joint Commission, Certification Process).
• A plan to submit any corrective actions, which "must be submitted to The Joint Commission within 60 days after the survey" (Certification Process).
• An owner for the mid-point "intra-cycle" conference call on performance measurement and standards compliance (ACPC Review Process Guide 2026).

The introductory call is the place to walk through this list against where your program stands today.

How it compares

See all Accreditation Consulting services.

What it costs

The cost has two parts: any Joint Commission fee and your own staff and clinician time. The Joint Commission does not publish a fee schedule for perinatal certification on the pages we reviewed; fees depend on scope. Its pricing page covers accreditation, not certification: "Accreditation fees are calculated based on the services provided and your average daily census" (Joint Commission, Pricing). IHS scopes each engagement after a free introductory call.

What this is not

• IHS is not part of the Joint Commission. It does not grant, influence or predict a certification decision.
• IHS does not submit to the Joint Commission or act for your hospital before it. Your hospital applies, submits and corresponds.
• IHS does not set obstetric care. Protocols, escalation criteria and outcome interpretation belong to your clinicians, and this page is not clinical or legal advice.

Frequently asked questions

What is Joint Commission Advanced Certification in Perinatal Care?

It is a Joint Commission advanced certification that "provides a framework to help organizations drive improvements in clinical outcomes for mothers and babies" (Joint Commission). An advanced certification requires "the core requirements of standards, clinical practice guidelines, and clinically-specific requirements." The review follows the ACPC Review Process Guide 2026.

What is the difference between ACPC, ODC-PC and Maternal Levels of Care Verification?

ACPC is the advanced certification built on standards, clinical practice guidelines and clinically-specific requirements. ODC-PC adds "patient-focused outcomes measures" and "data-based benchmarking for participating organizations." Maternal Levels of Care Verification is a separate Joint Commission program with its own eligibility, set out in the Joint Commission's comparison grid.

Do we have to be Joint Commission accredited to get perinatal certification?

For ODC-PC, yes: "you must be a Joint Commission-accredited organization" (Perinatal Care page). Maternal Levels of Care Verification is open to programs in a Joint Commission-accredited hospital or critical access hospital, or in an organization compliant with applicable federal laws including the Medicare Conditions of Participation. The ACPC eligibility text was not among the pages we reviewed, so confirm it in your ACPC materials.

What performance data does perinatal certification require at initial review?

The Joint Commission states that programs "seeking initial certification are required to adopt a set of standardized performance measures," collect monthly data and submit it quarterly through CMIP, with threshold criteria for applicable measures (Disease-Specific Care page). ODC-PC adds a measure set "based largely on patient outcomes." The specific ACPC measures were not among the pages we reviewed.

How long is the ACPC on-site review and how much notice do we get?

The guide's template agenda is for "One or Two Reviewers for Two Days." A program going through certification for the first time "will receive a thirty (30) day advance notice of your on-site review date(s)" (ACPC Review Process Guide 2026).

How long does perinatal certification last and what happens at the intra-cycle review?

The Joint Commission's general certification process page says a decision is "valid for approximately two years" (Certification Process). The ACPC guide pages we read did not state the ACPC term, so confirm it in your ACPC materials. The guide says the intra-cycle evaluation of "performance measurement activities and standards compliance will be conducted via conference call with a Joint Commission reviewer."

What does perinatal certification cost?

The Joint Commission does not publish a fee schedule for perinatal certification on the pages we reviewed; fees depend on scope. Budget for your own staff and clinician time as well. IHS scopes each engagement after a free introductory call.

How does Joint Commission perinatal certification compare with the CMS Birthing-Friendly designation?

In its launch press release, CMS described Birthing-Friendly hospitals as those that "participate in a statewide or national perinatal quality improvement collaborative program and that implement evidence-based care to improve maternal health" (CMS). Verify the current criteria on CMS Care Compare. ACPC is a Joint Commission certification with an on-site review. IHS's reading (October 2026) is that the CMS announcement describes no on-site review; the two are separate.