Weekly Wire: November 6, 2020
The Staying Abreast: Weekly Wire e-Newsletter is a compendium of news, actions, and resources considered to be of interest or relevance to the breastfeeding field. The newsletter aims to support the USBC's mission "To drive collaborative efforts for policy and practices that create a landscape of breastfeeding support across the United States." Included items are submitted for consideration or identified by the USBC e-news team via extensive online review. Whenever possible, the newsletter utilizes language directly from the primary source of an item without additional analysis or edits. In some cases, the USBC offers additional perspectives through the "USBC Insights," media and partner highlights, and the "News & Views" section. Inclusion of an item in the e-newsletter does not imply endorsement or support by the USBC of an item or organization, unless specifically noted.
In this Issue:
- USBC Updates
- Friendly Airports for Mothers Improvement Act Signed Into Law
- Native American Heritage Month: Call for Resources
- Special Section on COVID-19
- National News
- Technical Webinar for Innovation Challenge to Reduce Breastfeeding Disparities, summarized from OWH
- Data Brief on U.S. Birth Rates and Infant Outcomes, summarized from CDC
- Webinar on Infant and Maternal Mortality, summarized from NWA
- Study on Maternal Breast Milk Odor and Newborn Pain, summarized from Breastfeeding Medicine
- State & Community News
- State Paid Leave Insurance Program Passed Into Law, summarized from Colorado
- Equity Lens
- Facebook Page to Support API Breastfeeding Families, summarized from APIBTF
- Webinar on Community Breastfeeding Support, summarized from MIBFN
- Resource on Essential Public Health Services, summarized from PHNCI
- Call for Stories on Racism in Healthcare, summarized from NIB
- News & Views
denotes a USBC member organization news item 
denotes a USBC-affiliated constellation news item
USBC Updates
Friendly Airports for Mothers Improvement Act Signed Into Law
The Friendly Airports for Mothers (FAM) Improvement Act has been signed into law! The new law requires small hub airports to maintain a clean, private, non-bathroom lactation space and a baby changing table in at least one men's and one women's restroom in each passenger terminal building. Already, large and medium hub airports must comply with these requirements by 2021 as part of the Friendly Airports for Mothers (FAM) Act, signed into law in 2018. The new law extends these provisions to small hub airports, which must come into compliance by 2023. In celebration, the USBC released a new informational webpage titled "Federal Legislation to Protect Breastfeeding Travelers."
Native American Heritage Month: Call for Resources
November is Native American Heritage Month! Native American Heritage Month recognizes the histories and continuing invaluable contributions of American Indian, Alaska Native, and Native Hawaiian people in the United States, celebrating the rich diversity in cultures, traditions, and languages, and focusing on how heritage intersects with health. The USBC hosts the "Native American Heritage Month" webpage featuring a compilation of resources, tools, and materials from USBC and the field. Please submit additional resources for consideration by completing the online submission form.
Special Section on COVID-19
As communities around the nation respond to the global Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic, the USBC has continued to serve as a communication hub for the breastfeeding field. View the updated "Infant and Young Child Feeding in Emergencies" webpage for key resources on COVID-19 and infant feeding. See the Staying Abreast: Weekly Wire archive for previous compilations of COVID-19 resources and updates. Submit additional resources for consideration via the online form. Highlights from the field include:
- CDC: The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention published several resources on COVID-19 and maternal and infant health:
- CDC published a Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report (MMWR) titled "Update: Characteristics of Symptomatic Women of Reproductive Age with Laboratory-Confirmed SARS-CoV-2 Infection by Pregnancy Status — United States, January 22–October 3, 2020." The report found that pregnant women with COVID-19 are at increased risk for severe illness, compared with non-pregnant women with COVID-19.
- CDC also published an MMWR titled "Birth and Infant Outcomes Following Laboratory-Confirmed SARS-CoV-2 Infection in Pregnancy—SET-NET, 16 Jurisdictions, March 29–October 14, 2020." The report found that pregnant women with COVID-19 may be at increased risk of having a preterm infant (born before 37 weeks), which may lead to serious health problems for the infant.
- CDC updated the "Pregnancy, Breastfeeding, and Caring for Newborns" webpage to reflect the new MMWR reports.
- JAMA Pediatrics: The Journal of the American Medical Association Pediatrics released a webpage titled "Best Practices for COVID-19–Positive or Exposed Mothers—Breastfeeding and Pumping Milk." The webpage includes information and guidelines for breastfeeding people who are COVID-19 positive or have been exposed to COVID-19.
National News
Technical Webinar for Innovation Challenge to Reduce Breastfeeding Disparities, summarized from OWH
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office on Women's Health is hosting a technical webinar on Friday, November 6, from 2-3 p.m. ET on the Reducing Disparities in Breastfeeding Innovation Challenge funding opportunity. The challenge is a national competition to identify effective, pre-existing programs that increase breastfeeding initiation and continuation rates and decrease disparities among breastfeeding mothers in the United States. The goal of this innovative competition is to demonstrate sustainability and the ability to replicate and/or expand a program that has proven outcomes to improve breastfeeding rates and reduce disparities. Webinar presenters will provide an overview of the challenge and answer attendee questions. The application deadline for the challenge is Monday, November 16, 2020.
Data Brief on U.S. Birth Rates and Infant Outcomes, summarized from CDC
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, National Center for Health Statistics published a data brief titled "Births in the United States, 2019." The brief presents selected highlights from 2019 final birth data on key demographic, health care utilization, and infant health indicators. Key findings include a general decline in the fertility rate in the United States, a continued rise in preterm and early-term deliveries, and a decrease in Medicaid as a payment source for deliveries.
Webinar on Infant and Maternal Mortality, summarized from NWA
The National WIC Association is hosting a webinar titled "The Landscape of Infant and Maternal Mortality in the US" on Thursday, November 12, from 3-4:30 p.m. ET. The presentation will provide a federal perspective on maternal mortality, address the state of infant mortality, and provide attendees with an update on the work of NWA's Maternal Mortality and Infant Mortality Task Forces. Attendees will learn about the role of WIC in addressing infant and maternal health outcomes. Presenters include the U.S. Surgeon General, Jerome Adams.
Study on Maternal Breast Milk Odor and Newborn Pain, summarized from Breastfeeding Medicine
Breastfeeding Medicine released an article titled "The Calming Effect of Maternal Breast Milk Odor on Term Infant: A Randomized Controlled Trial." The study assessed the effect of the odor of breast milk and formula milk on reducing the acute pain of newborn infants during the heel-prick blood sampling. The authors concluded that the odor of breast milk may be helpful in reducing the pain of the newborn during the procedure.
State & Community News
State Paid Leave Insurance Program Passed Into Law, summarized from Colorado
Colorado has passed Proposition 188, establishing a state paid family and medical leave insurance program. The program will provide up to 12 weeks of paid family and medical leave to bond with a new child, recover from a serious health condition, care for a seriously ill loved one, respond to military family needs, and address domestic violence and sexual assault. The program will be funded through employer and employee contributions and will begin offering benefits in 2024. Colorado is the ninth state in the country to establish a paid family and medical leave program and is the first to establish paid leave through a ballot measure. Media highlights include:
- A Better Balance: "Colorado Voters Overwhelmingly Approve Paid Family & Medical Leave"
- CPR News: "Colorado Voters Say Yes To A Paid Family And Medical Leave Program"
- Fast Company: "Colorado voters just passed paid family leave"
Equity Lens
Facebook Page to Support API Breastfeeding Families, summarized from APIBTF
The Asian & Pacific Breastfeeding Task Force has launched a multi-lingual breastfeeding support Facebook page to support Asian language-speaking families. Information on the page will be posted in English, Mandarin Chinese, and Vietnamese.
Webinar on Community Breastfeeding Support, summarized from MIBFN
The Michigan Breastfeeding Network launched an on-demand webinar titled "Innovative Community Initiatives to Support Breastfeeding." The presentation will include current stories from the field of inequitable practices and problematic policies impacting maternal-child care, and will include discussion on ways to operationalize solutions and strategies for family and community support. Speakers from Southeast Michigan IBCLCs of Color will introduce a common-sense community initiative developed from lessons learned in the field and share additional resources.
Resource on Essential Public Health Services, summarized from PHNCI
Public Health National Center for Innovations released an updated version of the "10 Essential Public Health Services." The resource provides a framework for public health to protect and promote the health of all people, with an emphasis on equity. The updated version was created with input from a task force of public health experts and incorporates current and future public health practices.
Call for Stories on Racism in Healthcare, summarized from NIB
Narrative Inquiry in Bioethics has issued a call for stories from patients, family members, and healthcare providers with first-hand experience with racism in a healthcare setting. The journal is seeking stories that involve racist behaviors of individuals, demonstrate both conscious and unconscious bias, or reveal racially-biased institutional systems.
News & Views
Bipartisan Policy Center blog: "New Survey: Facing Caregiving Challenges, Women Leaving the Workforce at Unprecedented Rates"
Detroit Free Press: "Detroit support groups for mothers: Breastfeeding reduces breast cancer risk"
Marine Corps Times: "Mother forced to choose between her baby's health and career faces removal from the Marine Corps"
USLCA blog: "Alone in the World"
