The U.S. Breastfeeding Committee hosted a Membership Meeting on Thursday, March 20. The biannual virtual event brings together representatives from the approximately 140 member organizations that comprise the USBC member network and work collaboratively to drive policy and practice changes that create a landscape of breastfeeding support.

At the opening of the meeting, USBC Executive Director Jennifer Day and Board Chair Tiana Pyles engaged in a “Mission Moment Fireside Chat.” The “Mission Moment” is a meeting-opening practice that serves to connect our work to the people we serve and the positive and impactful change we seek. This iteration was a conversation between USBC leaders Jennifer and Tiana. Deep gratitude to them for sharing their stories, grounding us in what is happening in the world, giving us hope about what is possible, and guiding us in what we can do right now!
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In the below excerpt from the fireside chat, Jennifer shares her personal story and a glimpse into what brought her to the field.  

The U.S. Breastfeeding Committee and our network of members, partners, and supporters work diligently to remove the policy, system, and environmental barriers that families face. In 2024, we did many great things together, coming together as a field to advocate for progress on all five of the policy priorities selected by the field and membership for the 118th Congressional session, which included:

• Federal Funding for Breastfeeding
• Infant Nutrition Security
• Access to Lactation Support and Supplies
• Workplace Protections
• Maternity Care Practices

In addition to mobilizing organizations to advance federal policy, the USBC developed new resources to equip the field with tools for advancing state policy priorities. To kick off the year, the USBC launched the Breastfeeding Policy Map, a new resource to help the lactation field monitor federal and state policy proposals — bills and regulations that have been introduced but not yet passed. Regularly updated to reflect proposals with the potential to impact infant feeding and/or the lactation field, the map is helping organizations around the country keep tabs on the policy efforts impacting the families they serve. But that’s not all, we also developed a breastfeeding resource hub featuring an indexed “link library” where individuals and organizations can easily access publications and data sources for their research and policy needs. This webpage is publicly accessible and offers a convenient corresponding downloadable PDF.

We thank you for your continued support and are proud to share this detailed account of our policy efforts this year. 

Since 2012, Congress has allocated funds to the CDC Hospitals Promoting Breastfeeding program. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) uses these funds to improve maternity care practices, increase access to peer and professional support, ensure continuity of breastfeeding care, increase support for breastfeeding employees, and address disparities in breastfeeding rates. In Fiscal Year (FY) 2024, our collective efforts helped maintain level funding of $9.75 million for this line item. 

​Over 170 organizations joined the USBC call to invest in breastfeeding, bolstered by thousands of constituent messages sent with USBC action tools. At the same time, we are looking to the future. This year, for the first time, the USBC submitted a budget request to the Office on Management and Budget, urging the White House to prioritize breastfeeding in the Fiscal Year 2025 President’s Budget. The USBC also submitted appropriations requests to nine Representatives and seven Senators from both sides of the aisle. The FY25 federal budget is still under negotiation and the USBC and our network are working hard to demonstrate why a larger investment is needed to meet the needs of today’s families. 

Ready to take action? Add your organization to the sign-on letter and contact your legislators with our easy action tool.

The USBC is also monitoring and mobilizing action to support funding for a variety of other federal programs that support lactation. The FY25 Senate and House bills include different overall funding levels for the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC), Racial and Ethnic Approaches to Community Health (REACH) program, and the Maternal Health and Pregnancy Outcomes Vision for Everyone (IMPROVE) Initiative, as well as overall funding levels for several federal agencies that have important roles in the landscape of breastfeeding support. We are closely monitoring budget negotiations and taking action to protect these essential efforts to increase support and reduce disparities. Subscribe to the Staying Abreast: Weekly Wire newsletter for updates and action opportunities. 

It is critical that the nation takes decisive action to build a robust infrastructure for infant nutrition security in the U.S. that holds all families in care. The USBC is working hard to advocate for policies and programs that expand access to pasteurized donor human milk and protect infant and young child feeding in emergencies. 

Pasteurized donor human milk is lifesaving for vulnerable infants, particularly those born preterm or with serious health complications. Last year, the USBC-affiliated Pasteurized Donor Human Milk (PDHM) Constellation championed the bipartisan, bicameral introduction of the Access to Donor Milk Act (S. 2819/H.R. 5486) which would strengthen the national infrastructure for pasteurized donor human milk banks and help protect infant nutrition security. The Constellation continues to support this effort, coordinating a joint letter signed by almost 250 organizations, fact sheet, and story compilation calling on Congress to prioritize this important legislation. In addition, the USBC hosted an individual action tool to allow constituents to contact their legislators about the Access to Donor Milk Act. 

Infant and young child feeding in emergencies is another crucial aspect of infant nutrition security. Infants and children are among the most vulnerable in an emergency, so it is critical that the nation takes steps to ensure that infants are safely fed and supported. The USBC submitted a comment to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) on proposed revisions to the Public Assistance Program and Policy Guide encouraging FEMA to include the provision of lactation support and supplies during emergencies.

The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine is completing a consensus study on the macroeconomic, social, and health costs and benefits of breastfeeding. The USBC was invited to meet with the committee to inform the study’s development and Cheryl Lebedevitch, former USBC National Policy Director, and Camille Abbe, USBC Director of Strategic Partnerships, provided essential information on the infant nutrition security landscape, current gaps, and how the study can help increase understanding of the role of breastfeeding in a healthy economy. 

Too often, new parents are left without the basic lactation support and supplies they need to start and maintain human milk feeding. The USBC and our network continue to advocate for timely, comprehensive, and culturally appropriate care for all families. 

The Lactation Support Providers Constellation published a 2024 update to their Lactation Support Provider Descriptor Chart. This valuable resource aims to describe and differentiate between types of lactation support providers and programs and, in addition to being included in educational materials, is often referenced when advocating for insurance coverage for lactation support providers. In addition to important updates and clarifications, the 2024 iteration celebrates the inclusion of two Breastfeeding Counselor programs tailored for specific populations, including one for families serving in the US military and one program specifically for and serving Indigenous people. 

Employment policies in the United States make breastfeeding harder than it needs to be. The United States is one of the only countries in the world without a national paid family and medical leave program, and nearly 1 in 4 employed mothers return to work within two weeks of childbirth. 

In 2022, the PUMP for Nursing Mothers Act and Pregnant Workers Fairness Act were signed into law. Throughout 2024, the USBC continued to support the strong implementation of these historic laws, including wide distribution of new PUMP Act resources and PWFA final rule and interpretive guidance, which included strong protections for lactating workers thanks to an impressive public comment response led by the USBC-affiliated Workplace Support Constellation in 2023. The USBC delegation of Jennifer Day, USBC Executive Director, and Cheryl Lebedevitch, former USBC National Policy Director, continued to push for strong implementation and expansion of these protections at an intimate event hosted by the White House Gender Policy Council and Office of Public Engagement.

While major advancements for lactating workers have been realized in recent years, pilots and flight attendants are not protected by the PUMP Act. The USBC mobilized support for the AIR PUMP Act, which would close this gap, with an individual action tool and successfully advocated for the inclusion of a provision requiring the Federal Aviation Administration to issue guidance for airlines on supporting breastfeeding flight crew. 

The U.S. Breastfeeding Committee submitted a comment to a bipartisan, bicameral Congressional working group in response to their request for information (RFI) on paid leave. The USBC comment highlights the importance of establishing guaranteed, federally protected access to paid family and medical leave, specifically pointing to the impact of paid leave on breastfeeding success and broader maternal and child health outcomes. This effort was bolstered by thousands of messages from constituents sent via the USBC action tool. 

The United States is facing a serious maternity care crisis. Maternal mortality is higher than it was in previous generations, with significant and worsening disparities for women and families of color, particularly in Black and Indigenous communities. Supportive, culturally aligned maternity care practices can play an essential role in reducing maternal mortality and infant morbidity while setting families up for breastfeeding success. 
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The USBC is part of a mighty coalition working to advance a legislative package known as the Black Maternal Health Momnibus. The package of 13 bills addresses the drivers of maternal mortality, morbidity, and disparities in the U.S., including barriers to breastfeeding, and the USBC network sent a strong message urging Congress to pass the Momnibus with the USBC action tool.

Together, we rose to the invitation to make a big impact in 2024. We showed up when it was time to dig into the details of complicated policies because we knew what it could mean for babies and families. We elevated our concerns and solutions to policymakers. We showed up, even when it was challenging. We still are showing up. And it was all possible thanks to your support and engagement.

We are buoyed by every action you take! Signing on to letters, using our advocacy tools to contact legislators, and urging others to act by posting on social media and talking to people in your networks are all necessary steps to advance the policy agenda we've defined together. We also need financial support to fund our advocacy efforts, which are not covered by our grant funding. Please consider making a donation to the USBC. All contributions, from $25 to $2,500 or more, are valuable, worthy, and appreciated.

​We are so grateful to have you with us on this journey and look forward to another big year in 2025! 

In August, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) released new breastfeeding data from the National Immunization Survey-Child (NIS-Child). The data capture the breastfeeding rates of infants born in the United States in 2021. CDC uses data from the NIS-Child to understand rates of breastfeeding initiation, duration, and exclusivity across time. This data is also used to monitor progress toward the nation’s breastfeeding targets, as outlined in Healthy People 2030 (HP2030). 

• Access the new breastfeeding rates and compare them to data from previous years
  
• View the new breastfeeding rates by state
  
• View the new breastfeeding by demographic data