Since the Breastfeeding Promotion Act of 2009 was first introduced in Congress a month ago, three new co-sponsors have committed to the bill (two from New York and one from Guam), bringing the total number of sponsors up to 13 in the House and two in the Senate. Senator Jeff Merkley, the original sponsor in the Senate, offered the Breastfeeding Promotion Act as an amendment to the Senate Health Committee health care reform bill and it was accepted! While it may not make the final cut, this is tremendous progress! The D.C. Breastfeeding Coalition promises to let us know when …read more

Calling all United States readers! It only takes 60 seconds to use this easy tool from the United States Breastfeeding Committee (USBC) to ask your representatives and senators to co-sponsor the Breastfeeding Promotion Act of 2009. Simply type in your name and address including zip code+4 and the USBC does the rest! Here are more details in an email you can forward to ask your friends to use the tool as well.

Whether or not you live in the United States, please take a moment to join the Facebook group I created in support of the Breastfeeding Promotion Act of 2009.
This is the fifth time this bill has been up for consideration in Congress and it needs a strong show of support for passage in this 111th Congress! Please help spread the word through Facebook, Twitter, and any breastfeeding groups to which you belong! If you live in the United States, please consider writing to your representatives and senators to ask them to co-sponsor the bill. We need a groundswell of …read more

The Breastfeeding Promotion Act of 2009 was introduced on June 11, 2009. Now is the time to take action to support HR2819 / S1244 by writing to your state representatives and senators to ask them to co-sponsor the bill. In addition to the original sponsors Representative Carolyn Maloney of New York and Senator Jeff Merkley of Oregon, 10 representatives and one senator co-sponsor the bill as of June 17, 2009: Reps. Capps, Olver, and Frank of Massachusetts, Reps. Roybal-Allard, Levin, and Meeks of New York, and Reps. Kaptur, Snyder, Schwartz, and Moran of Virginia, and Senator Gillibrand of New York.
You …read more

Nursing mothers have Representative Carolyn Maloney (D-NY) to thank for her tireless attempts to see a Breastfeeding Promotion Act passed in Congress. Last Thursday Representative Maloney and Senator Jeff Merkley announced the introduction of the Breastfeeding Promotion Act of 2009 (H.R. 2819 / S. 1244).
Incredibly, this is the fifth time the Act has been up for consideration. Representative Maloney spoke to a crowd of nursing mothers on Capitol Hill:
This bill is needed now more than ever, as moms head back to work earlier than ever during this recession. I hope that with Senator Merkley’s good efforts, we can get …read more

Congresswoman Carolyn Maloney (D-NY) plans to re-introduce the federal Breastfeeding Promotion Act on May 10, 2007. If you’re in the Washington, DC area, you can show your support for the legislation by participating in a nurse-in on Capitol Hill on May 10. A strong showing is needed to make a difference as several previous attempts to pass such legislation have stalled in the House Subcommittee on Employer-Employee Relations.
Representative Maloney’s aide Elizabeth Down shared these details with me:
WHAT:
“NURSE-IN” to introduce the Breastfeeding Promotion Act
WHO:
Nursing mothers
Congresswoman Carolyn Maloney (D-NY)
Congressman Chris Shays (R-CT)
Others to be announced
WHEN:
11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.
Thursday, May 10, …read more

In the wake of a mother being kicked off a plane for refusing to cover herself with a blanket while nursing, MomsRising.org has started a petition:
Sign this petition to tell Delta Airlines to get a clue and be supportive of breastfeeding mothers. And tell Congress it’s time to pass the Breastfeeding Promotion Act, which amends the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to protect breastfeeding mothers. Clearly this law is needed now!
Go here to sign the e-petition.
For more information about the Breastfeeding Promotion Act, visit the web page of the sponsor, House Representative Carolyn B. Maloney. La Leche League discusses how …read more