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The U.S. Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA) said late Monday it was issuing a national emergency declaration to waive hours-of-service requirements for commercial vehicle drivers transporting baby formula ingredients and packaging. ... The FMCSA order includes, but is not limited to, whey, casein, corn syrup and hydrolyzed protein, and containers and packaging for baby formula. (Shepardson, 5/23)

Parents struggling to find baby formula amid a nationwide shortage are reporting that price gougers are selling bottles and cans marked up by as much as 300 percent or more on websites like eBay, OfferUp, Amazon and Craigslist, and inside Facebook communities. But in many cases, they’re finding that the platforms are doing little to punish the predatory sellers. (Cook, 5/23)

Riley San Miguel said her son, Kru, was barely a month old when he started crying all the time, not wanting to eat. When he developed a fever, he was quickly admitted to an intensive care unit. His spinal fluid was infected with bacteria, and it was spreading to his brain. The doctors believed it had probably come from his infant formula. ... Her son, she learned, had been exposed to Cronobacter sakazakii, a deadly bacterium that is often linked to babies who consume powdered formula. ... regulators are confronting deeper issues of safety that persist in the manufacturing of powdered infant formula. There is no comprehensive mechanism for detecting or investigating Cronobacter infections, and only one state, Minnesota, requires doctors and laboratories to report cases to the authorities. (Morris, Jewett and Bogel-Burroughs, 5/23)

Kate Jorgensen was down to a week’s worth of infant formula for her 5-month-old when the messages started to stream in. Desperate for the Enfamil Gentlease formula that calms her daughter’s digestive discomfort, Jorgensen had posted on national and local Facebook pages that have emerged in recent weeks to connect parents with the formula they need. In Platte City, Missouri, not one of the numerous grocery stores, pharmacies and big box retailers she checked for days had her baby’s formula, and she was running out of time. (Luterman and Carrazana, 5/23)

The crisis has prompted many to wonder why millions of babies in the U.S. depend on formula in the first place when exclusive breastfeeding is recommended for the first six months of life by major medical entities like the American Academy of Pediatrics and the World Health Organization. Breastfeeding doesn’t work for everyone. Health experts say there are a range of medical issues, from metabolic disorders to infectious diseases, that may limit babies or parents from breastfeeding. “The contraindications for breastfeeding are rare,” said Dr. Lori Feldman-Winters, chair of the American Academy of Pediatrics’ section on breastfeeding. “Sometimes they encounter medical problems and we need to do better to help mothers overcome those problems.” (Rodriguez, 5/24)

A Facebook post linked several unfounded claims to create one conspiracy theory about U.S. baby formula shortages.“(Pfizer) says do not breastfeed,” the May 17 post said. “Baby formula shortages everywhere. Gates promotes brand new artificial breast milk technology. All within less than a 2 week period. …Nothing to see here.“ ... The claim that “(Pfizer) says do not breastfeed” appears to be a reference to falsehoods that Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine isn’t recommended while breastfeeding. Those claims said the recommendation came from Pfizer, but included screenshots of a document published by United Kingdom health officials in late 2020, when COVID-19 vaccines were in their infancy and rollout had just begun, the Associated Press reported earlier this month. (Curet, 5/23)