{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://hayes.house.gov/press-releases?ID=57A75646-119D-4E84-A9B3-4CC51CFF9FAD", "Hayes Applauds USDA Announcement of Final Rule to Increase Access to Baby Formula During a Shortage", "2023-12-14", "2023", "2023-12", "Democrat", "House", "CT", "Jahana Hayes", "H001081", "hayes.house.gov", "hayes", "https://hayes.house.gov/press-releases", "scraper", "WASHINGTON \u2013 Today, the U.S. Department of Agriculturepublished a final rule codifying provisions of the Access to Baby Formula Act of 2022, legislation led byCongresswoman Jahana Hayes (CT-05) during the height of the 2022 baby formula shortage in the United States.\n\n\u201cWhen the baby formula shortage began last year, many parents were left wondering how they would feed their children. For parents enrolled in WIC, there was an added pressure of having to purchase specific formula based on program requirements. I know first-hand how critical WIC is to families, but the shortage revealed how dangerous those limitations can be,\u201d said Congresswoman Jahana Hayes, Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Nutrition, Foreign Agriculture, and Horticulture. \u201cMy Access to Baby Formula Act and the new USDA rule, will help families in the face of crisis. This rule helps strengthen a program that has historically been associated with improved infant health outcomes and reduced infant mortality.\u201d\n\n\u201cAll families in America should be able to keep their children fed and healthy. Regrettably, the devastating shortage of infant formula last year disproportionately hurt families that rely on WIC benefits to secure infant formula, leaving them with few options to purchase safe formula for their infants,\u201d said Congressman Bobby Scott, Ranking Member of the House Education and the Workforce Committee.\n\n\u201cThat is why Congresswoman Hayes and I led House passage of the bipartisan Access to Baby Formula Act of 2022 to ensure that\u2014during public health emergencies, supply chain disruptions, product recalls, and other emergencies\u2014families relying on WIC can use their benefits to purchase any safe infant formula products available on the shelves.\n\n\u201cWith today\u2019s final rule, our nation\u2019s families can rest assured that, in times of crisis, they will be able to continue providing their infants with the nutrition they need. I applaud the Biden administration for faithfully implementing this law and ensuring that\u2014no matter the circumstances\u2014we support our most vulnerable families and infants.\u201d\n\nThe Access to Baby Formula Act amended the Child Nutrition Act of 1966 to:\n\nEstablish a waiver authority to address emergencies, disasters, and supply chain disruptions by ensuring states that contract with companies for the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC) can secure supplies from additional manufacturers.\n\nWaive requirements that can slow down the process to get formula back on the shelves, without sacrificing safety standards.\n\nStrengthen coordination and information sharing between the Secretary of Agriculture and Secretary of Health and Human Services regarding any supply chain disruption, including supplemental food recalls.\n\nThe final USDA rule will:\n\nAdd requirements to State agency infant formula cost containment contracts.\n\nEstablish waiver authority to the Secretary of Agriculture to address certain emergencies, disasters, and supply chain disruptions impacting WIC.\n\nRequire WIC State agencies to develop a plan of alternate operating procedures, commonly referred to as a disaster plan.\n\nApproximately half of the baby formula purchased in the United States is purchased through the WIC program. During a crisis, it is essential we have an infrastructure in place to help families feed their newborn babies and infants.\n\nCongresswoman Hayes worked hard to ensure the Access to Baby Formula Act of 2022 passed in the House of Representatives with strong bipartisan support \u2013 a vote of 413-9. The legislation passed in the Senate unanimously by voice vote and was signed into law by President Joe Biden in May of 2022.", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-08T01:14:16Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://hayes.house.gov/press-releases?ID=57A75646-119D-4E84-A9B3-4CC51CFF9FAD"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 1.7736800946295261, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}