AN ACT appropriating funds to support lactation consultant training programs at North Carolina Agricultural & Technical State University and Johnson C. Smith University.

The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts:

SECTION 1.(a)  The following definitions apply in this section:

(1)        Historically Black College or University or HBCU. – An institution of higher education that was founded to educate Black citizens who were historically restricted from attending predominantly white institutions of higher education.

(2)        Lactation consultants. – Educators or counselors trained in breast feeding or chest feeding practices, lactation care, and lactation services.

(3)        Lactation services. – The clinical application of scientific principles and a multidisciplinary body of evidence for evaluation, problem identification, treatment, education, and consultation to childbearing families regarding lactation care and services.

(4)        Maternity care services. – Health care related to an individual's pregnancy, childbirth, or postpartum recovery.

(5)        Preceptor. – A person who is certified by the International Board of Lactation Consultant Examiners or another national or international accrediting organization as having met the requirements to supervise lactation consultants‑in‑training during the training period.

SECTION 1.(b)  There is appropriated from the General Fund to the Board of Governors of The University of North Carolina the sum of five hundred thousand dollars ($500,000) in nonrecurring funds for the 2024‑2025 fiscal year to be used for the purposes of recruiting, training, and retaining a diverse workforce of lactation consultants in North Carolina by supporting the infrastructure and sustainability of lactation consultant training programs at two of the State's Historically Black Colleges and Universities. These funds shall be distributed equally between North Carolina Agricultural & Technical State University and Johnson C. Smith University to cover costs incurred by each university for administering a lactation training program, including, but not limited to:

(1)        Leasing or other costs for teaching facilities or approved clinical training sites.

(2)        Student aid or scholarships.

(3)        Compensation for lactation consultant training program teachers and preceptors.

SECTION 1.(c)  The Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Minority Health and Health Disparities, shall provide technical assistance to North Carolina Agricultural & Technical State University and Johnson C. Smith University with respect to the following:

(1)        Developing culturally appropriate training content for the lactation consultant training programs funded by State appropriations.

(2)        Recruiting persons from historically marginalized populations to enroll in the lactation consultant training programs offered at these universities.

(3)        Recruiting historically underutilized providers to serve as teachers and preceptors in the lactation consultant training programs offered at these universities.

(4)        Identifying rural and medically underserved areas of the State experiencing a shortage of lactation consultants in order to recruit program graduates to work in these areas.

SECTION 1.(d)  By May 1, 2026, the Department of Health and Human Services, Office of Minority Health and Health Disparities, shall evaluate and submit a report to the Joint Legislative Oversight Committee on Health and Human Services and the Joint Legislative Education Oversight Committee on the benefits received by the State as a result of funding the lactation consultant training programs at North Carolina Agricultural & Technical State University and Johnson C. Smith University. The report shall include at least all of the following information and recommendations:

(1)        The total number of lactation consultants who received training at one of the programs funded by this section, broken down by (i) race and ethnicity and (ii) chosen work site, such as hospital, provider office, or community‑based organization.

(2)        A review of the prenatal and postpartum experiences of patients who received lactation consultant services from a health care professional who graduated from one of the programs funded by this section. The review shall address patients' experiences relative to the following:

a.         Health insurance coverage for maternity care services, including telehealth lactation consultant services.

b.         Contributing factors to population‑based disparities in breast feeding and chest feeding outcomes, including bias and discrimination toward patients who are members of racial and ethnic minority groups.

c.         Patient satisfaction with the services received from these lactation consultants.

d.         Breast feeding or chest feeding initiation and duration rates of patients who received services from these lactation consultants.

SECTION 2.  This act becomes effective July 1, 2024.