New York City officials to offer free hygineer and wipes to new mothers
New York Mayor Bill de Blasio has announced a $300,000 campaign to support breastfeeding moms and newborns and to boost access to infant hygiene products.
The campaign will focus on newborns with eczema, who may not be able to breastfeed and have other health issues.
The campaign is being funded by a $100,000 grant from the foundation of New York Governor Andrew Cuomo, who has a close personal relationship with De Blasio.
“I think it’s great for our state,” Cuomo said.
“It’s really good for our children.
And I think it would be good for the economy as well.”
The mayor also wants to increase the number of breastfeeding mothers in the city, which is currently at about 20 percent.
“We have so many moms who are nursing, and they’re all out there, and it’s so hard to get there,” de Blasio said.
De Blasio also wants more breastfeeding support in the community and to increase awareness of the health benefits of breastfeeding.
“I think there’s more awareness around what’s really happening, what’s not happening and what’s good for you and what is not,” he said.
“It’s just really good that we can all do that, and that people can understand that breastfeeding is good for their children,” he added.
The city also will provide free sanitary wipes, as well as an additional $25 to $50 for the city’s first four months of the year.
The wipes can be used at home, on-site or at the laundromat.
The mayor said the city will also distribute an additional 100,000 disposable diapers to new moms and their newborns, and an additional 250,000 baby wipes to women in their 20s and 30s.
“What we’re doing is making sure that we have all of our resources and all of the resources we can to support moms and to support their breastfeeding,” he told the Associated Press.
“The fact that we are seeing a reduction in the number [of] women who are breastfeeding and a reduction on the number who are using those products, I think is really encouraging.”
De Blasio is in the middle of a national breastfeeding push, and the mayor has already been endorsed by the American Academy of Pediatrics, the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists and the American Nurses Association.
New York Mayor Bill de Blasio has announced a $300,000 campaign to support breastfeeding moms and newborns and to boost…
