Weekly Wire: US Conference of Catholic Bishops Endorse PUMP Act, WH Conference, 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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Weekly Wire: US Conference of Catholic Bishops Endorse PUMP Act, WH Conference, and more

9/23/2022

Weekly Wire: September 23, 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 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
- Thank You to Our National Breastfeeding Month Donors!
Special Section on Hispanic Heritage Month
National News
- White House Conference on Hunger, Nutrition and Health on Livestream
- United States Conference of Catholic Bishops Endorses PUMP Act
- Bottles and Breastfeeding Equipment Screening (BABES) Enhancement Screening Act Introduced in Senate
- Maternal and Child Health Home Visiting Reauthorization Act Moves Out of Committee
- Open Access Articles on Maternal and Child Nutrition
- Webinar on Workplace Protections for Expecting and New Mothers in the Manufacturing and Warehousing Industry
- New Data on Pregnancy-Related Deaths Released
- Action Tool in Support of Healthy Meals, Healthy Kids Act
- CBO Report on Pregnant Women in Custody Act
- Toolkit on Intersectionality Policymaking for Women, Children, and Families
- Webinar on Implementing a Donor Milk Program
- On-Demand Webinar on Navigating New Motherhood as a Birth/Breastfeeding Worker
State & Community News
- NY Grant Opportunity: Breastfeeding, Chestfeeding and Lactation Friendly New York
News & Views
Journal Publications

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

USBC Updates

Thank You to Our National Breastfeeding Month Donors!

National Breastfeeding Month has come to a close but our work to create a landscape of support for human milk feeding families continues 365 days a year. Thank you for standing by our side as we work to create the lasting changes families need, like lactation-friendly maternity care practices, workplace lactation protections, and building an infrastructure for infant and young child feeding in emergencies. Our collective efforts are making a difference and our advocacy work would not be possible without the generosity of our donors. 70 incredible donors gave to the USBC last month: thank you! Our work neither begins nor ends with National Breastfeeding Month, and the generosity of these individuals helps build our forward momentum.

If you did not have an opportunity to make your donation during last month's campaign, there are many ways to give to the USBC, now including a vehicle donation program. By making a monthly recurring donation, your gift can go even further. To give monthly, simply enter your donation amount and check the box that says "Make this donation monthly!"

Special Section on Hispanic Heritage Month

Hispanic Heritage Month is September 15-October 15! During the month, individuals and organizations celebrate the rich histories, cultural influences, and contributions of Hispanics/Latinx in the United States. Latinx are a diverse group with ancestry from 28 countries. Almost a quarter of all births in the US are to Latinx parents. Learn more about the month and explore resources on the USBC webpage. Highlights from the field include:

Lactation Education Resources: Lactation Education Resources is hosting a virtual celebration of Hispanic Heritage Month. Speakers Nikki Greenaway, Nekisha Killings, and Tecpaxochitl Mireya Gonzalez will discuss how to amplify Indigenous voices and celebrate pre-Hispanic ancestral foods, calendric systems, ceremonies, and origins.
HHS Department of Minority Health: The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Minority Health announced that this year's Hispanic Heritage Month theme is, Unidos: Inclusivity for a Stronger Nation. Visit the OMH Hispanic Heritage Month website to find bilingual resources and materials on Hispanic/Latino health, downloadable graphics, and social media messaging.
Healthy Horizons: Healthy Horizons published a blog titled "Celebrate Hispanic/Latinx Heritage Month with Healthy Horizons." The blog highlights Hispanic/Latinx-specific resources, tools, and materials.

National News

White House Conference on Hunger, Nutrition and Health on Livestream

The White House Conference on Hunger, Nutrition, and Health will be live-streamed on Wednesday, September 28, at 9 a.m. ET. Attendees can sign up to receive a conference join link through an online form. The conference will bring together anti-hunger and nutrition advocates, Americans with lived experiences, and individuals from food companies, the health care community, and local and state governments. The goal of the conference is to launch a national plan that outlines how to achieve the goal of ending hunger and increasing healthy eating and physical activity in the U.S. by 2030.

USBC Insight: USBC has been closely following this landmark conference because of its historical significance and potential influence on the nutrition and hunger policy landscape. This conference is taking place over 50 years after the first and only White House Conference on Hunger, Nutrition and Health. Some of the most notable accomplishments to come out of the initial conference were the launch of a pilot program that would become the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) and the first-ever Dietary Guidelines for Americans.

We anticipate breastfeeding and lactation being part of the conversation at this conference. The Task Force on Hunger, Nutrition and Health published a report titled "Informing the White House Conference: Ambitious, Actionable Recommendations to End Hunger, Advance Nutrition and Improve Health in the United States." The report includes a series of policy recommendations to advance the goals of the conference, which include creating and investing in programs and policies that promote human milk feeding as the premier source of infant nutrition.

United States Conference of Catholic Bishops Endorses PUMP Act

The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops issued a letter to Senator Jeff Merkley (D-OR) and Representative Carolyn Maloney (D-NY-12), urging Congress to pass the Providing Urgent Maternal Protections (PUMP) for Nursing Mothers Act (S. 1658/H.R. 3110). The PUMP for Nursing Mothers Act would extend simple accommodations, like reasonable break time and space for mothers to express breastmilk at their places of employment.

Bottles and Breastfeeding Equipment Screening (BABES) Enhancement Screening Act Introduced in Senate

Senators Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), Steve Daines (R-MT), and Mazie Hirono (D-HI) introduced the Bottles and Breastfeeding Equipment Screening (BABES) Enhancement Act (S. 4880). The bill would require the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) to clarify and regularly update and communicate its guidelines related to the hygienic handling of breast milk, breastfeeding equipment and infant formula, in consultation with recognized maternal and child health organizations. The bill has been referred to the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation. This is the companion bill to House bill H.R.8695, introduced in August. Read the press release.

Maternal and Child Health Home Visiting Reauthorization Act Moves Out of Committee

The House Ways and Means Committee passed the Jackie Walorski Maternal and Child Health Home Visiting Reauthorization Act (H.R.8876) out of committee with a bipartisan vote of 41-0. The bill would reauthorize the Maternal, Infant and Child Health Home Visiting (MIECHV) Program. Media and partner highlights include:

ASTHO Legislative Alert: "Federal Home Visiting Reauthorization Bill Moves Forward"
House Ways and Means Committee press release: "Neal, Brady Praise Committee Passage of Home Visiting and Mental Health Legislation"

Open Access Articles on Maternal and Child Nutrition

The American Journal of Public Health released the first three peer-reviewed articles from an upcoming open access special issue sponsored by 1,000 Days, an initiative of FHI Solutions, exploring the importance of the 1,000-day window from pregnancy to age 2 for maternal and child nutrition and health in the United States. The special issue will highlight how policies, systems, and environments affect the nutrition of mothers and children during the first 1,000 days and summarize the state of the science and research needs related to maternal and child nutrition in the United States. Read the update from 1,000 Days.

Webinar on Workplace Protections for Expecting and New Mothers in the Manufacturing and Warehousing Industry

The U.S. Department of Labor, Wage and Hour Division is hosting a webinar titled, "What to Expect When Your Employee is Expecting: Manufacturing and Warehousing," on Wednesday, October 12, at 1 p.m. ET. This webinar will provide employers in the manufacturing and warehouse industries with information to understand their responsibilities under federal workplace laws that protect pregnant workers from discrimination, provide time off, and ensure nursing workers are able to take breaks to pump breast milk during the workday.

New Data on Pregnancy-Related Deaths Released

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released a pair of reports analyzing new data from Maternal Mortality Review Committees (MMRCs). MMRCs are representatives of diverse clinical and non-clinical backgrounds who review the circumstances around pregnancy-related deaths to identify recommendations to prevent future deaths. "Pregnancy-Related Deaths: Data from Maternal Mortality Review Committees in 36 US States, 2017–2019" found that among pregnancy-related deaths, 22% of deaths occurred during pregnancy, 25% occurred on the day of delivery or within 7 days after, and 53% occurred between 7 days to 1 year after pregnancy. "Pregnancy-Related Deaths Among American Indian or Alaska Native Persons: Data from Maternal Mortality Review Committees in 36 US States, 2017–2019" shows that American Indian or Alaska Native (AI/AN) people are disproportionally impacted by pregnancy-related deaths. Among AI/AN people, mental health and hemorrhage were the most common underlying causes of death, and 93% of deaths were determined to be preventable.

Action Tool in Support of Healthy Meals, Healthy Kids Act

MomsRising launched an individual action tool calling on Congress to reduce childhood hunger by passing the Healthy Meals, Healthy Kids Act. Several aspects of the bill are highlighted in the letter, including a provision to modernize the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC) by expanding the Breastfeeding Peer Counselor Program to ensure more mothers have access to breastfeeding support.

CBO Report on Pregnant Women in Custody Act

The U.S. House Judiciary Committee advanced the Pregnant Women in Custody Act (H.R. 6878) and released House Report 117-465 on the Pregnant Women in Custody Act. The bill would provide a national standard of care to address pregnancy-related needs of incarcerated women during pregnancy, labor, delivery and post-partum periods.

Toolkit on Intersectionality Policymaking for Women, Children, and Families

The Intersectionality Research Institute at George Washington University published a toolkit titled, "Intersectionality Policymaking Toolkit: Key Principles for Intersectionality-Informed Policy Making Process To Serve Diverse Women, Children and Families." The resource was developed to help policymakers, practitioners and other stakeholders with their health equity work in the area of maternal and child health. In the toolkit, the Intersectionality Principles are applied to three key issues in maternal and child health: infant mortality, breastfeeding/chestfeeding, and pregnancy-related mortality.

Webinar on Implementing a Donor Milk Program

The Human Milk Banking Association is hosting a webinar titled, "Implementing a Donor Milk Program: How to Get Started" on Tuesday, October 18, at 2 p.m. ET. Recent Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) data shows that many neonatal intensive care units do not yet provide donor milk, despite recommendations by the American Academy of Pediatrics. Additionally, previous CDC data demonstrate the inequitable distribution of donor human milk by race, highlighting the need to center equity in donor milk provision. Presenters Lindsay Groff, Mona Liza Hamlin, Lisa Stellwagen, and Kim Updegrove will discuss guidelines to introduce and implement a donor milk program at a hospital.

On-Demand Webinar on Navigating New Motherhood as a Birth/Breastfeeding Worker

The Michigan Breastfeeding Network opened registration for an on-demand webinar titled, "Navigating New Motherhood as a Birth/Breastfeeding Worker." The webinar will cover what receiving lactation support in both the hospital and community looks like and how lived experience of many BIPOC lactation/birth workers intersects with that of the families they serve.

State & Community News

NY Grant Opportunity: Breastfeeding, Chestfeeding, and Lactation Friendly New York

The New York State Department of Health, Division of Chronic Disease Prevention, Bureau of Community Chronic Disease Prevention (BCCDP) announced the Breastfeeding, Chestfeeding, and Lactation Friendly New York Request for Applications (RFA). The Department seeks to fund a coordinated community network to build and expand partnerships, and advance policy, system, and environmental changes to promote, support, and protect human milk feeding. This RFA is intended to reduce disparities in breastfeeding initiation, duration, and exclusivity, improve health, and reduce obesity and chronic disease risk factors. More information on this grant opportunity can be found on the New York State Grants Gateway.