On May 25, 2022, the Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Appropriations Subcommittee held a hearing, “The Infant Formula Crises,” listening to testimonies relating to the effect of the crisis. Witnesses were Ms. Ginger Carney, the Director of Clinical Nutrition at St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, Ms. Sarah Chamberlin, the Executive
This week, Axios reported that Senator Joe Manchin (D-WV) and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) have revived their discussions about a reconciliation package. In December of last year, these discussions about the Build Back Better package ground to a halt when Senator Manchin announced that he could not support the legislation that was proposed.
During a Senate Health, Labor, Education and Pensions (HELP) Committee hearing on Thursday, May 26th, 2022, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Commissioner Robert Califf told senators that the nation’s infant formula shortage likely won’t be fully resolved until late July. Commissioner Califf said that it would take time for the administration's efforts to boost
This week, Congress and the White House took steps to address the nationwide baby formula shortage, seeking to ease the burden especially for families with low incomes and those who need hypoallergenic formula for babies with milk allergies. On Wednesday, May 18th, the House passed the Access to Baby Formula Act, a bill led by
On Monday, May 16th, 2022, Senators Patty Murray (D-WA) and Tim Kaine (D-VA) officially announced their revamped child care and early learning reconciliation proposal. As we wrote last week, this proposal is roughly half the size of the original child care proposal in Build Back Better and largely focuses on expanding funding through the Child
On Thursday, May 19th, 2022, the Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Subcommittee held its hearing, “Fiscal Year 2023 Budget Request for the Food and Drug Administration,” with FDA Commissioner Dr. Robert M. Califf. Although the hearing was intended to focus on the budget, the biggest topic of conversation was the
Last weekend, on Sunday, May 9th, 2022, Politico reported that Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions (HELP) Committee Chair Patty Murray (D-WA) is in the process of pitching a new child care proposal to the rest of the Democratic party, taking a bold step to keep child care in the conversation about a potential reconciliation
This week, the White House made several statements regarding the shortage of infant formula across the nation. On Feb. 17, the agency warned consumers not to use certain powdered infant formula products from Abbott Nutrition’s Sturgis, Michigan facility, and Abbott initiated a voluntary recall of certain products. On Monday, May 10th, 2022, the White House
ZERO TO THREE released the State of Babies Yearbook: 2022 on May 3rd, 2022, in a virtual briefing featuring ZERO TO THREE Chief Policy Officer Miriam Calderón, Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-Conn.), Sen. Bob Casey (D-Penn.), and families with young children who shared their experiences. The yearbook is designed to bridge the gap between science and
On Friday, May 6th, Ways and Means Committee Chairman Richard E. Neal (D-MA) released a statement marking Child Care Provider Appreciation Day. He noted that, “America’s child care workforce plays an essential role in our economy and provides millions of parents with the ability to have jobs of their own.” The Chairman also highlighted the