In January 2011, the United States Surgeon General, Dr. Regina Benjamin called on the entire nation to support the removal of barriers to this important public health behavior. The Surgeon General’s Call to Action to Support Breastfeeding (CTA) is an unprecedented document from the nation’s highest medical source, calling on health care providers, employers, insurers, policymakers, researchers, and the community at large to take 20 concrete action steps to support mothers in reaching their personal breastfeeding goals. This important document provides focused direction for everyone to support and promote breastfeeding. The Connecticut Breastfeeding Coalition (CBC) heard Dr. Benjamin's "Call to Action" and has put it into practice by structuring the organization's efforts according to the Action Steps and Implementation Strategies outlined by the document on a statewide level.

At a meeting of the corporation in September 2011, the CBC voted to re-structure standing committees that had been in place since 2002, by adopting new bylaws that require the coalition to focus efforts according to the six sectors of society defined by the CTA. As such, board members with expertise in each sector serve as liaisons to oversee each committee. The bylaws read:

Article V Committees

There shall be six standing committees. The six standing committees shall reflect the six sectors of society identified in the Surgeon General’s Call to Action to Support Breastfeeding released in 2011. Activities of each of the six CBC committees shall support the framework of Action Steps and Implementation Strategies outlined in the Call to Action and serve to address the barriers identified in the report. A CBC board member will serve as a liaison to each of the committees and responsibilities will include overseeing the adaptation of the Call to Action to the state of Connecticut.

A. Mothers and Their Families Committee

B. Communities Committee

C. Health Care Committee

D. Employment Committee

E. Research and Surveillance Committee

F. Public Health Infrastructure Committee

The rationale for the newly-adopted committee structure is to further the mission of the CBC "to improve Connecticut's health by working collaboratively to promote, protect and support breastfeeding" by providing clear, thorough, evidence-based strategies to address the key barriers to breastfeeding in the state of Connecticut.

To read the Surgeon General's Call to Action to Support Breastfeeding click here.