On Thursday, May 19, the House and Senate passed Senator Reverend Warnock’s Access to Baby Formula Act
President Biden signed the bipartisan legislation into law on May 21, 2022
The Senator is a member of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry
Last week, Senator Reverend Warnock pressed President Biden for a national strategy to address the baby formula shortage
The Senator also urged the Infant Nutrition Council of America (INCA) to increase infant formula production and prevent future supply chain disruptions
Senator Reverend Warnock: “I’m proud the Senate and House took urgently-needed, bipartisan action to address this shortage and make sure some of our most vulnerable children can access the nutrition they need.”
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Washington, D.C. — Over the weekend, on May 21, 2022, President Biden signed bipartisan legislation introduced by U.S. Senator Reverend Raphael Warnock (D-GA), the Access to Baby Formula Act, into law, to make sure moms and babies who rely on the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) have the formula they need. Senator Warnock joined Senators Debbie Stabenow (D-MI), Chairwoman of the Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition, and Forestry, and John Boozman (R-AR), Ranking Member, to introduce the bipartisan legislation on Wednesday, May 19, and the bill unanimously passed the Senate on Thursday, May 19.
“I come to this crisis first as a father,” said Senator Reverend Warnock.“I’m proud the Senate and House took urgently-needed, bipartisan action to address this shortage and make sure some of our most vulnerable children can access the nutrition they need. I’m going to continue to push infant formula manufacturers and the White House to increase coordination, manufacturing and distribution until baby formula is back in stock in our grocery stores.”
The WIC program provides information on healthy eating and helps millions of families buy nutritious foods including baby formula. This legislation gives the USDA the authority to be more flexible during a formula supply crisis such as a natural disaster, public health emergency, or recall. This flexibility would ensure that the brand or type of formula families can buy is not restricted by program rules, allowing families to purchase whatever is available in the store. In addition, the legislation would require manufacturers that provide formula for WIC babies have a plan in place to respond to a shortage so that families will be able to purchase the formula they need.
The Access to Baby Formula Act is supported by more than 250 national, regional, and local child nutrition advocates.
The bill is cosponsored by Sens. Sherrod Brown (D-OH), Roger Marshall (R-KS), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), Shelley Moore Capito (R-WV), Cory Booker (D-NJ), John Hoeven (R-ND), Patrick Leahy (D-VT), Thom Tillis (R-NC), Tina Smith (D-MN), Susan Collins (R-ME), Chuck Grassley (R-IA), Michael Bennet (D-CO), Deb Fischer (R-NE), Amy Klobuchar (D-MN), John Cornyn (R-TX), Bob Casey (D-PA), Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), Ben Ray Luján (D-NM), Rob Portman (R-OH), Dick Durbin (D-IL), Maggie Hassan (D-NH), Tammy Duckworth (D-IL), Mark Kelly (D-AZ), Bob Menendez (D-NJ), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Jack Reed (D-RI), Alex Padilla (D-CA), Ed Markey (D-MA), Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH), Patty Murray (D-WA), Martin Heinrich (D-NM), Angus King (I-ME), Jon Tester (D-MT), Jon Ossoff (D-GA), Krysten Sinema (D-AZ), and Bernie Sanders (I-VT).
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