Weekly Wire: FY24 Action Tool, Hispanic Heritage Month, and 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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The WW goes on hiatus several times a year: the weeks of the Independence Day, Thanksgiving, Christmas, & New Year's holidays, the weeks before the Presidents Day, Memorial Day, and Labor Day holidays, and the weeks of the USBC membership meetings.

Weekly Wire: FY24 Action Tool, Hispanic Heritage Month, and more

9/16/2022

Weekly Wire: September 16, 2022

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 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 an 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
- Take Action in Support of Federal Funding for Breastfeeding
- New Webpage Featuring USBC Media Highlights
- Call for Submissions: Hispanic Heritage Month
- USBC Supports...
International News
- Guidance on Infant and Young Child Feeding After Nuclear Power Plant Accident
- Malnutrition Action Commitment Tracker
National News
- Seminar on CDC Public Health Priorities for Reducing Chronic Disease
- Funding Opportunity for Community-Based Partnerships Supporting Child Health
- Report to Congress on Nutrition Education Coordination
- Action Tool Supporting MIECHV Reauthorization
- Best States to Work Index Released
- Webinar on Updated AAP Breastfeeding Guidelines
- Report on 2022 Home Visiting Program Information and Outcomes
- Congressional Briefing on Maternal Health and Motherhood
- Call for Nominations to Committee on Complementary Feeding Interventions for Infants and Young Children
State & Community News
- Report on State Paid Family and Medical Leave Programs
- Minnesota Recognition Program Webinar
- South Carolina Paid Leave Law Goes Into Effect
- Video Series on Workplace Lactation Support
News & Views
Journal Publications

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

USBC Updates

Take Action in Support of Federal Funding for Breastfeeding

The U.S. Breastfeeding Committee launched an action tool titled "Families Need Support: The President's Budget Must Invest in Breastfeeding." The federal budget process begins each year with the release of the President's Budget, which sets the stage for negotiations for that fiscal year. Individuals can use the tool to contact the Biden Administration and urge them to increase the budget request for the CDC Hospitals Promoting Breastfeeding program in Fiscal Year 2024 (to be released next year). Help us call on the White House to invest in breastfeeding: take action with us!

New Webpage Featuring USBC Media Highlights

The U.S. Breastfeeding Committee published a new webpage titled "USBC in the News" which highlights recent news articles and press releases featuring interviews with members of the USBC staff team. Learn more about our work to build a landscape of breastfeeding support through policy, systems, and environmental change, and help amplify our efforts by sharing the articles with your network.

Call for Submissions: Hispanic Heritage Month

September 15 through October 15 is Hispanic Heritage Month! The USBC hosts a webpage for the month with a curated selection of infant feeding news and resources. Please share additional and new relevant materials and tools for consideration.

USBC Supports...

Home Visiting Coalition: Letter in Support of MIECHV Reauthorization

International News

Guidance on Infant and Young Child Feeding After Nuclear Power Plant Accident

The IFE Core Group published a document titled "Guidance Note: Infant and young child feeding in the first three days after a nuclear power plant accident." The publication is intended for healthcare workers and emergency response planners. It provides interim operational guidance to inform emergency plans and responses on appropriate infant and young child feeding in the first three days after a nuclear power plant accident.

Malnutrition Action Commitment Tracker

The Global Nutrition Report launched the Nutrition Accountability Framework (NAF) Commitment Tracker. The tool lets users explore how governments, donors, civil society organizations, businesses, and others have committed to taking action to end malnutrition in all its forms. Users can filter by global nutrition targets, including exclusive breastfeeding.

National News

Seminar on CDC Public Health Priorities for Reducing Chronic Disease

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Division of Nutrition, Physical Activity, and Obesity is hosting a seminar titled "Priority Strategies: Improving Health and Reducing Chronic Disease" on Thursday, September 29, at 2 p.m. ET. Speakers will focus on the five priority population-focused public health actions to reduce chronic disease and support health equity, including making breastfeeding easier to initiate and sustain.

Funding Opportunity for Community-Based Partnerships Supporting Child Health

The Health Resources and Services Administration launched a funding opportunity through the Healthy Tomorrows Partnership for Children Program. The program's purpose is to support community-based partnerships and collaborations to promote access to health care for under-resourced and underserved children, youth, and their families nationwide through the implementation and evaluation of new or enhanced community-based projects and models of care. The deadline to apply is Wednesday, October 12.

Report to Congress on Nutrition Education Coordination

The U.S. Department of Agriculture released a report to Congress describing nutrition education coordination during Fiscal Year 2021. The report highlights information on nutrition assistance programs, including lactation support provided as part of the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC).

Action Tool Supporting MIECHV Reauthorization

MomsRising launched an action tool titled "Quick signature: Do Not Let Families Lose Critical Home Visiting Services." Individuals can use the tool to contact their Members of Congress to support reauthorization and increased investment in the Maternal, Infant & Early Childhood Home Visiting (MIECHV) program.

Best States to Work Index Released

Oxfam released the "2022 Best States to Work Index," a database that measures policies supporting working families—including paid leave and paid sick days—in all 50 states, Washington, DC, and Puerto Rico. Oxfam also published the second edition of the "Best States for Working Women," which ranks states based on gender-specific protections, including pregnancy and lactation accommodations. The report offers policy recommendations for federal and state policymakers and includes interactive maps. Media highlights include:

Politics of Poverty: "A Blueprint for Well-Being: Strong Labor Laws"

Webinar on Updated AAP Breastfeeding Guidelines

The Boston Medical Center is hosting a webinar titled "AAP Updates Its Recommendations for Breastfeeding" on Thursday, September 29, at 1 p.m ET. Dr. Lori Feldman-Winter will delineate critical changes in the American Academy of Pediatrics breastfeeding recommendations and technical report, describe the evidence for why breastfeeding matters, and identify strategies to manage breastfeeding in the setting of jaundice and other common conditions.

Report on 2022 Home Visiting Program Information and Outcomes

The National Home Visiting Resource Center released the 2022 Home Visiting Yearbook. The 2022 Yearbook includes data on who is being served by home visiting, information from 15 evidence-based home visiting models and 12 emerging models, information from 2021 on where home visiting is operating and how many families and children could benefit from home visiting, and Maternal, Infant, and Early Childhood Home Visiting (MIECHV) Program state data tables. Breastfeeding is included as a maternal and child health indicator. Individuals can download reports with data disaggregated by race and ethnicity.

Congressional Briefing on Maternal Health and Motherhood

The Mom Congress is hosting a webinar titled "2022 Saving and Supporting Moms Congressional Briefing" on Monday, September 19, at 12:30 p.m. ET. During this briefing, experts will discuss the latest maternal mortality dataset from the CDC, research regarding paid parental leave and the impact on the economy, child care post-COVID, and the current burden of maternal mental health.

Call for Nominations to Committee on Complementary Feeding Interventions for Infants and Young Children

The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine issued a call for nominations to an ad hoc committee that will be convened to conduct a scoping review and assessment of the peer-reviewed published literature as well as publicly available information on interventions aimed at improving infant and young child feeding behaviors under age two. Nominations for committee members and reviewers for this study will be received through Friday, September 16.

State & Community News

Report on State Paid Family and Medical Leave Programs

Zero to Three published a report titled "Paid Family Medical Leave in States: Progress and Considerations." The report gives a point-in-time look at progress states have made in advancing paid family and medical leave, describes current programs, and provides policy recommendations.

Minnesota Recognition Program Webinar

The Minnesota Breastfeeding Coalition is hosting a series of informational presentations on the 10 Step Learning Collaborative. The Minnesota Department of Health Breastfeeding Friendly Birth Center Recognition Program recognizes Birth Centers statewide that have taken steps toward implementing the Ten Steps to Successful Breastfeeding. The 10 Step Learning Collaborative assists birth centers in working towards this achievement, with mini-grants available to participants. Informational sessions will be held on Tuesday, September 20, Tuesday, October 11, and Wednesday, October 26, at 12 p.m CT. Registration is not required. Simply join the zoom meeting at the designated time (same link for all meeting options).

South Carolina Paid Leave Law Goes Into Effect

South Carolina Governor Henry McMaster signed the state employee paid family leave bill (S. 11) into law, which will go into effect on Saturday, October 1. The law provides state employees with paid family leave for the birth of a child, adoption of a child, or for fostering a child. The law provides six weeks of paid leave for an employee who gives birth or is a primary caregiver of a child, two weeks for an employee who does not give birth or is not the primary caregiver but is a new parent, and two weeks of leave for employees who foster a child.

Video Series on Workplace Lactation Support

The Ohio Department of Health released a series of videos promoting the importance of lactation support in the workplace. The videos are available on the Ohio Workplace PLUS Toolkit website under the Toolkit Videos tab. They feature solutions and perspectives from Human Resources, supervisors, and employees in Ohio businesses representing a variety of industries.