CHEER has received a $6,000,000 cooperative agreement from the Agreement from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to implement CHAMPS National. The program will improve maternity care practices for breastfeeding in 100 hospitals and aims to decrease racial inequities in breastfeeding rates, especially among African Americans.

CHAMPS National will activate a diverse team of interdisciplinary experts to increase safe, equitable hospital practices consistent with the World Health Organization (WHO)/UNICEF’s Ten Steps to Successful Breastfeeding (Ten Steps) in a three-year initiative beginning on September 30th. CHEER will partner with the CDC, ROSE (Reaching Our Sisters Everywhere), and other experts in maternal-child health and health equity to enroll, train, and support 100 hospitals across the country.

US breastfeeding rates are lowest among Black infants, due in large part to institutional racism and lack of evidence-based prenatal and postpartum care. Breastfeeding-supportive maternity practices equitably applied increase hospital breastfeeding rates, especially in populations at the highest risk of not breastfeeding.

Our CHAMPS model has a track record of improving breastfeeding rates and decreasing racial inequities in vulnerable populations. The new CDC funding will allow CHAMPS to make a national impact, increasing breastfeeding rates, advancing health equity, and shaping the course of Ten Steps compliance in the US for decades to come.

Read the press release to learn more.