Feed the babies
As if rising prices weren’t a big enough drag on the economy in Joe Biden’s America (which, ahem, continues producing jobs at a rapid clip), here comes a shortage that feels ripped out of a war-torn country: It’s increasingly hard for parents to find the baby formula to feed their little ones. This cannot stand.
Contra Republicans’ tantrums, Biden isn’t to blame for the shortage rippling through the nation. The single biggest cause is the necessary health-related shutdown of a plant run by Abbott, the country’s largest manufacturer. But there are steps Washington must take to take the edge off.
Before we get there, let’s address some stupidity that stinks like a full diaper. Commentators responding with some variation of “why do parents need formula when they can just breastfeed?” are embarrassing themselves. While breastfeeding has health benefits, there are myriad reasons why parents often find it impractical or impossible to feed their infants that way alone, ranging from work schedules to physical impediments to allergies. Help them, don’t shame them.
And while it’s good news that the Abbott plant is reopening this week, the country must urgently ask whether it’s wise to have one company control more than 40% of the production. Relatedly, it’s time to override restrictions that prevent the easy importation of formulas, even from countries with extremely high and well-enforced health and safety standards.
For reasons that purport to protect little ones but often boil down to economic protectionism, it is extraordinarily complicated and expensive for manufacturers in Europe and even Canada to sell their products here, leaving American consumers without access to a wider supply when domestic supply is constrained.
Just as with the importation of prescription drugs, no one is suggesting the United States open the floodgates to give babies junk. But reputable manufacturers from safe places should cause no alarm. The FDA can test the product to ensure compliance, just as it does here. Babies, and parents, are crying.