The Louisiana Department of Health (LDH) is recognizing August as National Breastfeeding Month, a time to focus on the essential function that breastfeeding performs in shaping the well being and well-being of households.

Louisiana has a powerful tradition of household and neighborhood help, and LDH is devoted to empowering moms and fostering an inclusive setting to advertise breastfeeding. However, LDH additionally acknowledges breastfeeding may be difficult.

“We know that not all women can or choose to breastfeed. But for women who do, support from their loved ones and communities is essential to breastfeeding successfully,” stated LDH Deputy Secretary Tonya Joiner. “Our teams remain committed to providing information to mothers and families, and improving perinatal healthcare systems through evidence-based programming and policy change.” 

LDH continues to work towards fostering a breastfeeding-friendly setting in Louisiana and enhancing statewide breastfeeding charges. The Office of Public Health (OPH’s) Bureau of Family Health and Bureau of Nutrition Services have laid out a imaginative and prescient for Louisiana to help ladies who breastfeed. An essential element of this plan is guaranteeing that ladies know their rights, particularly within the office. Several legal guidelines, together with the Pump Act that took impact earlier this 12 months, shield nursing mothers by requiring employers to supply entry to ample break instances and personal areas to pump or breastfeed. This not solely promotes worker well being, but additionally will increase productiveness and reduces absenteeism.

In 2023, LDH made key adjustments in Louisiana’s Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) program that had been aimed toward growing breastfeeding charges and growing prenatal and toddler participation in this system. These adjustments included:

• Expanding protection choices for outpatient lactation consultations, which offers alternatives for mothers to obtain skilled steerage on breastfeeding
• Decreasing limitations to acquiring breast pumps via Medicaid reimbursement
• Enhancing outreach to eligible prenatal ladies to extend participation, together with via textual content messages and calls
• Exceeding a purpose of enrolling greater than 1,700 new contributors within the Pacify breastfeeding app: More than 1,875 contributors are actually enrolled.
• Louisiana’s breastfeeding charges are under nationwide averages, with decrease charges amongst Black and Medicaid-insured moms: 45% of Louisiana infants are breastfed via their first 6 months of life; the nationwide common is 55.8%. 

This Breastfeeding Awareness Month, LDH is operating a social media marketing campaign that goals to teach the general public about office legal guidelines and requirements that facilitate breastfeeding (pumping) at work.

The marketing campaign may even promote the provision of multilingual sources out there via Louisiana’s WIC Program, which is a part of this system’s targets to increase the variety of eligible households that make the most of WIC.