Staying Abreast: Weekly Wire - Action Resources to Preserve Public Health Nutrition & more

The USBC e-Newsletter, Staying Abreast, is published in a weekly news brief format, called the Weekly Wire (WW). Past issues are archived below.

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Staying Abreast: Weekly Wire - Action Resources to Preserve Public Health Nutrition & more

5/30/2025

In this issue:

USBC Updates
- Weekly Wire Hiatus
National News
- ASPHN Action Resources to Preserve Public Health Nutrition
- Save The Date: Indigenous Milk Medicine Week
- GAO Report on Barriers to Lactation Accommodation for Flight Crewmembers
- Updated FAMILY Act Fact Sheets
State & Community News
- Breastfeed Durham Pharmacy Lactation Support Rack Card
- New Jersey Bill Introduced to Require Lactation Counseling After Birth
- Iowa Bill Providing Paid Parental Leave Signed Into Law
Action Opportunities
Upcoming Events
News & Views
Journal Publications

denotes a USBC member organization news item denotes a USBC-affiliated constellation news item

USBC Updates

Weekly Wire Hiatus

The Weekly Wire will be on hiatus next week as the USBC office will be closed the week of Monday, June 2. We look forward to connecting when we return the following week!

National News

ASPHN Action Resources to Preserve Public Health Nutrition

The Association of State Public Health Nutritionists (ASPHN) is issuing a call to action, "We All Must Act Now to Preserve Public Health Nutrition." The Centers for Disease Control’s (CDC) National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion (NCCDPHP) was eliminated in the President’s FY26 budget proposal. To help Americans understand how their health, finances, and safety will be impacted by the potential elimination of NCCDPHP, ASPHN developed a group of social media graphics and key messages that underscore the health, economic, and national security risks posed by the elimination of public health nutrition programs. The messages and accompanying captions and hashtags can be used to inform your community and encourage constituents to take action by calling on Congress. The call to action also includes talking points to help advocate for restoring NCCDPHP in the FY26 budget. These talking points have been tailored for state health leaders, healthcare systems, public health organizations, and the general public.

Save The Date: Indigenous Milk Medicine Week

The Indigenous Milk Medicine Collective announced that the 2025 Indigenous Milk Medicine Week theme is Unapologetically Indigenous: Love, Landback, & Liberation. This theme reflects the heart of IMMW, celebrating the strength, connection, and healing that Milk Medicine brings through community care. From our Ancestors to future generations, Milk Medicine is a vital thread that holds us together. Indigenous Milk Medicine Week will take place during National Breastfeeding Month, falling on August 8 through August 14.

GAO Report on Barriers to Lactation Accommodation for Flight Crewmembers

The U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) released a report, "Women in Aviation: Options Available to Lactating Crewmembers and Barriers to Expressing Breast Milk on the Job (GAO-25-107525)." The report responds to a directive included in the Senate report accompanying the Fiscal Year 2024 Transportation, Housing and Urban Development, and Related Agencies Appropriations Bill, which called on GAO to examine barriers to women in the airline industry. The report analyses the current state of lactation accommodations for airline crewmembers, and examines the inconsistencies and challenges faced by lactating pilots and flight attendants.

USBC Insight: The GAO’s findings provide important context and validation for the Federal Aviation Administration's (FAA) January 2025 release of an Information for Operators (InFO) document clarifying that lactating flight crewmembers are permitted to express breast milk during non-critical phases of flight. This guidance was required by the 2024 FAA reauthorization law, which the USBC and partners successfully advocated to include.

Updated FAMILY Act Fact Sheets

The National Partnership for Women & Families updated several fact sheets with new research in support of the Family And Medical Insurance Leave (FAMILY) Act. The fact sheet "The Family And Medical Insurance Leave (FAMILY) Act" highlights key features of the bill as well as research illustrating the benefits of paid leave for the health of workers and families, gender equity, businesses, and the broader economy. The "Key Facts: Paid Family and Medical Leave" fact sheet shares the latest on the high costs of not having a national paid leave program to women, families, and our country, and polling that demonstrates support for a solution. The "Paid Family and Medical Leave Is Good for Business" fact sheet elevates the business case for national paid leave, including how it would support productivity and how programs have succeeded in the states.

State & Community News

Breastfeed Durham Pharmacy Lactation Support Rack Card

Breastfeed Durham launched a new webpage, "Pharmacists Role in Breastfeeding Support: Empowering Families Through Evidence-Based Guidance." The webpage features a pharmacy rack card and is designed to equip pharmacists with trusted medication safety information while breastfeeding and help parents navigate infant feeding questions with confidence, especially when overwhelmed at the pharmacy counter.

New Jersey Bill Introduced to Require Lactation Counseling After Birth

New Jersey Assemblymembers Katz and Venezia introduced Assembly Bill 3008. The bill would require hospitals and birth centers to offer each person who has given birth at least one in-person or virtual, one-on-one consultation with a lactation counselor or lactation consultant prior to discharge.

Iowa Bill Providing Paid Parental Leave Signed Into Law

Iowa Governor Reynolds signed House File 889 into law. The new law provides state employees with paid parental leave. State employees who are birthing parents, non-birthing parents, and adoptive parents are all entitled to paid leave, which must be taken within 12 months of the birth or adoption of a child.