Rep. Cleaver, House Democrats Take Action to Address Infant Formula Shortage

(Washington, D.C.) – Today U.S. Representative Emanuel Cleaver, II (D-MO), along with the entire Democratic Caucus in the House of Representatives, passed multiple pieces of legislation to address the infant formula shortage that is distressing families across the country. Congressman Cleaver voted in favor of H.R. 7790, the Infant Formula Supplemental Appropriations Act, which would provide $28 million in emergency funding to give the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) the resources needed to remediate the shortage and ensure it never occurs again. Cleaver was also proud to cosponsor and vote for of H.R. 7791, the Access to Baby Formula Act, which would provide flexibility so that low-income families can continue purchasing safe infant formula with their Women, Infant, and Children (WIC) program benefits.

"As a parent, there are few things more distressing than going to the grocery store and seeing empty shelves when you have a hungry baby at home; yet, I continue to hear heartbreaking stories from families struggling to find formula," said Congressman Cleaver. "In the United States of America, that should never happen—which is why I'm pleased the House of Representatives is taking immediate, important steps to ensure it never occurs again. With additional funding for the FDA and flexibility for families, it is my hope that we can quickly increase the supply of formula in stores and ensure America's babies are getting the nutrition they desperately need. While Congress must continue to investigate the various causes of this shortage, I will do everything in my power to quickly guarantee a safe, reliable supply of formula for families throughout the Fifth Congressional District of Missouri."

The infant formula shortage was caused, in part, by a manufacturing recall, followed by the subsequent closure of a major manufacturing plant at Abbott Nutrition—which manufactures roughly 40 percent of infant formula in the United States. In February 2022, an Abbott Nutrition facility voluntarily recalled several infant formula products and the FDA issued a warning to consumers, urging them to forgo using recalled products like Similac, Alimentum, and EleCare.

The Infant Formula Supplemental Appropriations Act would provide funding to the FDA to strengthen the workforce focused on baby formula and increase inspection staff needed to speed up investigations and safety standard remediations. Additionally, the bill would provide the FDA with the resources needed to prevent fraudulent products from being placed on shelves and help acquire better data on the infant formula marketplace to prevent the potential for future shortages.

Approximately 50 percent of formula sold in the United States is sold to Americans participating in the WIC program. As the infant formula shortage has been exacerbated in recent weeks, it has had a particularly dangerous impact on women and children from underserved communities that rely on WIC benefits to purchase formula. To address these challenges, the Access to Baby Formula Act provides flexibility so that low-income families can continue purchasing safe infant formula with their WIC benefits during certain circumstances, including a supply chain disruption.

"While it was good to see the Biden Administration and Abbott Nutrition come to an agreement to restart production earlier this week, it's important that Congress provide the tools needed to accelerate the restart as quickly as possible and the flexibility necessary to ensure families can still get safe formula in the meantime," said Congressman Cleaver. "Those are precisely the steps that the House of Representatives took today, and I'm hopeful that we can quickly get these bills to the President's desk to alleviate the concerns of parents in Missouri and all over the nation."

Official text of the Infant Formula Supplemental Appropriations Act is available here.

Official text of the Access to Baby Formula Act is available here.

Emanuel Cleaver, II is the U.S. Representative for Missouri's Fifth Congressional District, which includes Kansas City, Independence, Lee's Summit, Raytown, Grandview, Sugar Creek, Blue Springs, Grain Valley, Oak Grove, North Kansas City, Gladstone, Claycomo, and all of Ray, Lafayette, and Saline Counties. He is a member of the exclusive House Financial Services Committee; Chairman of the House Subcommittee on Housing, Community Development, and Insurance; member of the Select Committee on the Modernization of Congress; member of the Committee on Homeland Security; and a Senior Whip of the Democratic Caucus. A high-resolution photo of Congressman Cleaver is available here.