Public Act 097-0713

HB4968 Enrolled LRB097 18751 DRJ 65112 b

AN ACT concerning health.

Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois,

represented in the General Assembly:

Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the

Hospital Infant Feeding Act.

Section 5. Definitions. In this Act:

"Baby-Friendly Hospital Initiative" means the voluntary

program sponsored by the World Health Organization (WHO) and

the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) that recognizes

hospitals that meet certain evaluation criteria regarding the

promotion of breastfeeding.

"Department" means the Department of Public Health.

"Hospital" has the meaning ascribed to that term in the

Hospital Licensing Act.

"Infant nutrition resource" means breastfeeding education

and infant formula safety and preparation.

Section 10. Infant feeding policy required.

(a) Every hospital that provides birthing services must

adopt an infant feeding policy that promotes breastfeeding. In

developing the policy, a hospital shall consider guidance

provided by the Baby-Friendly Hospital Initiative.

(b) An infant feeding policy adopted under this Section

shall include guidance on the use of formula (i) for medically

necessary supplementation, (ii) if preferred by the mother, or

(iii) when exclusive breastfeeding is contraindicated for the

mother or for the infant.

Section 15. Communication of policy. A hospital shall

routinely communicate the infant feeding policy to staff in the

hospital's obstetric and neonatal areas, beginning with

hospital staff orientation. The hospital shall also ensure that

the policy and infant nutrition resources are posted (i) in a

conspicuous place in the hospital's obstetric or neonatal area

or (ii) on the hospital's Internet or Intranet web site or on

the Internet or Intranet web site of the health system of which

the hospital is a part. The hospital shall make copies of the

policy available to the Department upon request.

Section 20. Application of policy. A hospital's infant

feeding policy adopted under this Act must apply to all

mother-infant couplets in the hospital's obstetric and

neonatal areas.

Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect January

1, 2013.