WASHINGTON, D.C. — On Saturday, May 21, the Access to Baby Formula Act, a bill led by Congresswoman Jahana Hayes (CT-05), was signed into law by President Joe Biden.

The Access to Baby Formula Act would allow for certain program requirements in the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) to be waived so families can more easily access the infant formula they need during times of crisis.

The US House of Representatives passed the legislation with overwhelming bipartisan support on May 18, 2022, then unanimously passed the Senate by voice vote on May 19, 2022.

“I know firsthand how transformative WIC can be for a family,” said Hayes. “This vital program provides life-sustaining nutrition at the most crucial stage of development; however, this crisis has revealed the harmful impacts of its limitations. I am happy to see my bill, the Access to Baby Formula Act, signed into law to protect families enrolled in WIC and provide them with urgent relief. I stand committed to continuing my work in Congress to address hunger for all affected.”

Bill text can be found at www.congress.gov/117/bills/hr7791/BILLS-117hr7791enr.pdf.

Other Lawmaker Initiatives

In related news, US senators Chris Murphy (D-Conn) and Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn) joined US Senator Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) in a letter urging Abbott Laboratories CEO Robert Ford to provide relief to state WIC programs and the mothers they serve.

Connecticut, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Maine, Rhode Island and Vermont jointly contract with Abbott to provide WIC recipients with access to formula — and mothers across the region are being hurt by the recent recall and ongoing shortages.

Since February, Abbott has provided very short-term relief to regional states in need of formula. In response, the senators are pushing for a long-term extension of rebates across all infant formulas through the rest of the year without unnecessary directives.

“Mothers in our states have been left to scrounge to find formula for their infants, traveling longer and longer distances only to find empty shelves. According to the most recent data, more than 40% of stores in our states are currently out of stock of infant formula,” the senators stated.

“This situation is especially untenable for low-income mothers, who do not have the time or resources to enable them to access this depleted supply. Given that WIC is expressly intended to support low-income families and that this supply crisis is a direct result of contamination at an Abbott facility, Abbott must ensure states have sufficiently flexible WIC contract obligations during this time,” the lawmakers continued. “In total, nearly 40,000 infants in our states’ WIC programs are either partially or fully formula-fed, and our states are restricted to Abbott-only formulas due to these contract obligations.”

“With this in mind, we strongly urge Abbott to extend rebates across all infant formulas at least through the duration of this year, without restrictions across products and without unnecessary directives on which products to prefer. Similarly, once safety concerns over Abbott infant formulas have been remedied, Abbott should work with states to ensure WIC recipients and families trust in Abbott products before removing rebates for competitive products.”

State Senator Tony Hwang also weighed in on the matter after co-hosting an informational hearing on Tuesday, May 17. Hwang shared some pointers provided by the American Academy of Pediatrics and the United States Food and Drug Administration to help families as they navigate the shortage:

American Academy of Pediatrics: “With the baby formula shortage, what should I do if I can’t find any?” healthychildren.org/English/tips-tools/ask-the-pediatrician/Pages/Are-there-shortages-of-infant-formula-due-to-COVID-19.aspx

View or download the Temporary Formula Substitutions List at portal.ct.gov/-/media/Departments-and-Agencies/DPH/dph/WIC-2018/Abbott-Infant-Formula-Recall/Temporary-Formula-Substitution-List-Abbott-Formula-Recall-Website-UPDATED-5-23-22.pdf.

The temporary formula substitutions list provides substitutes that you may find available in stores.

Comparable Formulas Authorized: The CT WIC Program is working closely with families to provide support and information on available options, including a temporarily expanded WIC formula list to offer comparable products for formulas that have been difficult to locate. This is available at: portal.ct.gov/dph/wic/wic.

Connecticut WIC Program

Officials from the Connecticut Department of Public Health have been utilizing numerous options to assist families of its Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Woman, Infants and Children Program during the nationwide infant formula shortage.

The formula shortage has made it difficult for WIC families to find formula, despite the additional products available to them. There is limited stock in stores due to decreased supply across the country, including in Connecticut. WIC has been feeling the impact of the formula shortage, which has become more significant since the recall in February.

“Families have to go to multiple stores to find enough formula or switch to another type of formula,” said DPH Commissioner Manisha Juthani, MD. “Some of the specialty formulas for medical conditions are scarce as well, and formula redemptions in Connecticut are down because the supply is very limited.”

Commissioner Juthani added that Connecticut is currently part of a multi-state contract with Abbott. However, because of the recall and through a waiver process with the United States Department of Agriculture, Abbott has been allowing the Connecticut WIC program to offer 80 comparable formulas when the company’s products are not available without being in breach of contract.

Additionally, DPH is not enforcing minimum stocking requirements for authorized retailers at this time as usually is suggested by USDA.

“Our team has been working closely with local agency staff to help families find retailers that have in stock products in their area, or even switch the participant’s benefits package when needed,” Commissioner Juthani said. “The staff also have been working directly with manufacturers to order emergency formula.”

Additionally, the DPH WIC Program and the American Academy of Pediatrics promote breastfeeding as the normal and optimal method to feed infants for at least the first year of life with a special emphasis on the health benefits derived from exclusive breastfeeding for the first six months.

For pregnant persons who were not considering breastfeeding, DPH strongly encourages expectant families to think about breastfeeding due to the unprecedented nationwide formula shortage.

For individuals currently combining breastfeeding and infant formula feeding, DPH recommends breastfeeding more often to increase milk supply and reduce the need for infant formula. Additional information to families has been communicated through the local WIC agency staff, the WIC One Call text system, through DPH’s social media channels and on the Connecticut WIC website: portal.ct.gov/dph/WIC/WIC.