Breastfeeding Data
WIC Data Dashboard
The WIC Data Dashboard contains information about participants receiving services with the Missouri WIC program. The dashboard provides real-time data for the past five years.
Missouri Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System (PRAMS)
Missouri breastfeeding data is available on the Missouri Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System (PRAMS). The data is provided on various nutritional indicators, including breastfeeding initiation and duration rates for Missouri women and infants who participate in WIC.
CDC Breastfeeding Report Card
State-by-state data to help health professionals, legislators, employers, business owners, community advocates and family members work together to protect, promote and support breastfeeding is located on the CDC Breastfeeding Report Card. More data is available on the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Breastfeeding page. Breastfeeding initiation data is also available at the county level to help guide community health assessment and guide local strategies for improving continuity of care.
Maternity Care Practices Report
This report describes specific opportunities to improve mother-baby care at hospitals and birth centers in Missouri and nationwide to successfully meet national quality care standards for perinatal care. This data is collected every other year, starting in 2007 by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Find more information on the CDC National Survey of Maternity Practices in Infant Nutrition and Care (mPinc).
Missouri Breastfeeding Laws
Title XII Public Health and Welfare, Section 191.918, RSMo
Missouri moms have the right to breastfeed their children in any public or private place, as long as they are allowed to be in that place.
Title XII Public Health and Welfare, Section 191.915, RSMo
Hospitals and ambulatory surgical centers that provide obstetrical care must provide new mothers with information on breastfeeding and the benefits to the child, and offer breastfeeding consultations where appropriate.
House Bill 1320
Revised the state breastfeeding law to include:
- Breastfeeding is not an act of indecency.
- Municipalities may not prohibit or restrict breastfeeding.
- Nursing mothers shall be excused from jury duty with a doctor's note.
Title XI Education and Libraries, Section 160.995, RSMo
Missouri schools are required to have a written lactation policy, provide accommodations for lactating employees, teachers and students to pump or breastfeed a child and address other needs relating to breastfeeding.
National Conference of State Legislatures
Provides information about breastfeeding laws in other states.
Federal Breastfeeding Laws
Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA)
Requires employers to provide:
- Reasonable break time to express milk.
- Private place, other than a bathroom, to express milk.
FLSA Protections to Pump at Work
Basic information and answers to frequently asked questions about workers' rights, including a one-page guide to federal protections for pregnant, postpartum and pumping workers.
A Better Balance
A nonprofit legal advocacy organization that provides a free and confidential legal helpline for working parents, including matters of pregnancy, postpartum and pumping rights for workers.
File a complaint with US DOL
File a complaint with the U.S. Department of Labor's Wage and Hour Division (WHD). WHD is responsible for administering and enforcing some of the nation's most important worker protection laws.
Breastfeeding traveler information
Explains your rights when traveling according to the United States Breastfeeding Committee (USBC).