New in 2022

The Pennsylvania Chapter, American Academy of Pediatrics, Pennsylvania Breastfeeding Coalition and Pennsylvania Department of Health have received a Sustaining Innovations in Breastfeeding Support grant from the Association for State and Territorial Health Officials. This grant will enable the organizations to align efforts and build on the strategic initiatives of the PABC Equity Workgroup by educating policy makers about chest/breastfeeding barriers and providing them with proactive solutions to increase breastfeeding equity among Black and Hispanic mothers. The goals of this project are to create a Community Lactation Support Network and educate policy makers about Medicaid Reimbursement for Lactation Support. PA AAP and PABC will be reaching out to community partners to compile culturally congruent lactation support resources across the state.

 

Public Health Policies

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• Healthy People 2030-Maternal, Infant and Child Health-Recommends increasing the “proportion of infants who are breastfed exclusively through 6 months old and continue breastfeeding with solids to one year (Objectives are MICH -5 and 16).

• The Institute of Medicine’s Consensus Report Clinical Preventive Services for Women:Closing the Gaps recommended third party coverage of, “Comprehensive lactation sup­port and counseling and costs of renting breastfeeding equipment.”

• The White House Task Force on Childhood Obesity Report to the President: recommended that hospitals, health care providers and insurance companies should educate new mothers about breastfeeding and provide support for breastfeeding.

• US Department of Health & Human Services National Prevention Strategy recommends support policies and programs in order to increase the initiation and duration of breastfeeding including workplace breastfeeding support and access to lactation services.

• The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention publishes the Breastfeeding Report Card to provide state-by-state data so that health professionals, legislators, employers, business owners, community advocates and family members can work together to identify states’ needs, develop solutions, and work together within their community to better protect, promote, and support breastfeeding. This report includes data from the Maternity Practices in Infant Nutrition and Care Survey which assesses lactation support services in maternal/childcare facilities.

• The US Department of Agriculture WIC food packages revisions to provide greater incentives for continued breastfeeding.

• The United States Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) Section 2713 “Coverage of Preventive Health Services” recommendations for breastfeeding include: pre and postnatal breastfeeding education, formal breastfeeding evaluations undertaken by trained caregivers in the hospital and out-patient care settings, followed by interventions to correct problems as needed.

• The Internal Revenue Service ruled that breast pumps and other nursing supplies could qualify for tax breaks.