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SB-402 Breastfeeding.(2013-2014)

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SB402:v95#DOCUMENT

Senate Bill No. 402
CHAPTER 666

An act to add Section 123367 to the Health and Safety Code, relating to public health.

[ Approved by Governor  October 09, 2013. Filed with Secretary of State  October 09, 2013. ]

LEGISLATIVE COUNSEL'S DIGEST


SB 402, De León. Breastfeeding.
Existing law provides for the licensure and regulation of health facilities, including hospitals, by the State Department of Public Health. Existing law, commencing January 1, 2014, requires all general acute care hospitals and special hospitals that have a perinatal unit, as defined, to have an infant-feeding policy.
This bill would require all general acute care hospitals and special hospitals that have a perinatal unit to adopt, by January 1, 2025, the “Ten Steps to Successful Breastfeeding,” as adopted by Baby-Friendly USA, per the Baby-Friendly Hospital Initiative, or an alternate process adopted by a health care service plan that includes evidenced-based policies and practices and targeted outcomes, or the Model Hospital Policy Recommendations as defined.
Vote: MAJORITY   Appropriation: NO   Fiscal Committee: YES   Local Program: NO  

The people of the State of California do enact as follows:


SECTION 1.

 The Legislature finds and declares all of the following:
(a) A growing body of evidence indicates that early infant-feeding practices can affect later growth and development, particularly with regard to obesity.
(b) The United States Surgeon General, and all the major health organizations, including the American Academy of Pediatrics and the World Health Organization (WHO), recommend exclusive breastfeeding for most babies, unless specifically contraindicated, for the first six months and continued breastfeeding with the addition of appropriate foods up to at least one year of age.
(c) The United States Healthy People 2020 goals for breastfeeding set new targets for decreased formula supplementation within the first two days of life and increased number of births in facilities that provide recommended lactation care.
(d) The federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention monitor hospital practices at the state and national level with the Maternity Practices in Infant Nutrition and Care (mPINC) survey. Whereas mPINC benchmarks suggest that 10 percent or fewer of breastfeeding infants should receive supplemental formula, fewer than 10 percent of California hospitals reach that goal.
(e) The Baby-Friendly Hospital Initiative (BFHI) is a global program sponsored by the WHO and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) to encourage and recognize hospitals that offer an optimal level of care for infant feeding. Baby-Friendly USA is the national authority for the BFHI in the United States. To date, 57 hospitals in California have received Baby-Friendly USA accreditation.
(f) In April 2010, the Joint Commission, the accreditation organization for hospitals, began including exclusive breastfeeding rates as part of its perinatal care core evaluation indicators for maternity hospitals.

SEC. 2.

 Section 123367 is added to the Health and Safety Code, to read:

123367.
 (a) For the purposes of this section, the following definitions shall apply:
(1) “Perinatal unit” means a maternity and newborn service of the hospital for the provision of care during pregnancy, labor, delivery, and postpartum and neonatal periods with appropriate staff, space, equipment, and supplies.
(2) “Baby-Friendly Hospital Initiative” means the program sponsored by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) that recognizes hospitals that offer an optimal level of care for infant feeding.
(b) All general acute care hospitals and special hospitals, as defined in subdivisions (a) and (f) of Section 1250, that have a perinatal unit shall, by January 1, 2025, adopt the “Ten Steps to Successful Breastfeeding,” as adopted by Baby-Friendly USA, per the Baby-Friendly Hospital Initiative, or an alternate process adopted by a health care service plan that includes evidenced-based policies and practices and targeted outcomes, or the Model Hospital Policy Recommendations as defined in paragraph (3) of subdivision (b) of Section 123366.