May 13, 2011 -- Portland, Oregon- Today, the Breastfeeding Coalition of Oregon (BCO), the Oregon Public Health Institute (OPHI) and the Portland Police Bureau (PPB) join Senators Jeff Merkley, Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), and Tom Harkin (D-IA), and Congresswoman Carolyn Maloney (D-NY) to introduce legislation to protect and expand working moms’ right to express milk for their infants while at work.
All major health authorities recommend that mothers breastfeed exclusively for six months and continue breastfeeding for at least the first year of a child’s life. Encouraging breastfeeding for working mothers supports increased rates of breastfeeding and alleviates the burden of acute and chronic diseases.
In Oregon, BCO, OPHI and Nursing Mothers Counsel (NMC) have played leading roles in promoting breastfeeding as crucial to the health of infants and mothers, including supporting the passage and implementation of Oregon’s groundbreaking Workplace Lactation Law. Oregon’s law served as the model for the current national workplace lactation legislation championed by Oregon Senator Jeff Merkley as part of the Affordable Care Act. BCO worked closely with the Portland Police Bureau to develop their milk expression policy that supports women officers’ transition back to work, which is highlighted at today’s press event.
“By just making a few changes, businesses and employers can make a huge difference in the lives of working moms and their babies. Breastfeeding is good for babies, it’s good for moms, and it’s good for business. This legislation expands the 2010 back to work breastfeeding provisions to all mothers, both wage earning and salaried,” said Merkley. Currently 12 million salaried women who work in traditional office environments are not covered under the federal law.
“Being a police officer is a difficult job. Being a police officer and providing for the nutritional needs of your infant child can be extremely difficult. It is the goal of the Portland Police Bureau to be as supportive as possible to assist women officers in providing this level of care to their newborn child while maintaining their ability to be part of our workforce,” said Portland Police Chief Mike Reese.
"The Supporting Working Moms Act provides protection for women in the workplace so they can insure the positive long term health impacts of exclusive breast milk feeding on themselves and their baby without sacrificing the economic stability of their family," said Marion Rice, Ed.D. Director- Breastfeeding Coalition of Oregon.
The Breastfeeding Coalition of Oregon's mission is to build and link community partners to support, promote and protect breastfeeding throughout the state of Oregon. OPHI is the organizational home of the Breastfeeding Coalition of Oregon. Oregon Public Health Institute is an independent, nonprofit organization committed to improving the health of Oregonians through advocacy and support of effective public health policy and activities.
