22/07/2025
Current proposed legislation, for instance, aims to protect formula manufacturers from litigation when babies have bad outcomes. That doesn’t seem right. See https://www.congress.gov/bill/119th-congress/house-bill/2300/text for more information.
Mothers’ Milk Bank at Austin, and the regulating and accrediting body for milk banking, the Human Milk Banking Association of North America, work to educate our elected officials throughout the country about intended and unintended consequences of these bills.
Every lawmaker is unique, with their own priorities, values, and areas of focus. That means we tailor our approach when speaking with them. For those with medical backgrounds we can dive deeply into the studies that show that babies born under 1500 grams need human milk only in order to have the least likelihood of experiencing Necrotizing Enterocolitis, an inflammatory condition of the intestines that comes with a high rate of fatality. For those with legal backgrounds, we focus on the impact of legislation that would limit a family’s ability to seek justice.
Regardless of background, most lawmakers can understand that putting babies at risk is bad, especially when that risk is avoidable by promoting breastfeeding and providing Pasteurized Donor Human Milk when mom’s milk is unavailable. And most can appreciate that nonprofit milk banks, regulated by the US FDA and HMBANA, have been providing safe donor milk with zero negative outcomes since 1985. And importantly, these same lawmakers are now aware that there is ample Pasteurized Donor Human Milk to feed all vulnerable babies in all US NICUs.
This work is about creating lasting positive change for families, and that improves health outcomes of vulnerable babies.
