Colorado WIC Program Policies and Procedures Section 2: Nutrition Services Revised: 07/01/2026

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Breastfeeding: Breast Pump Partnerships

Policy: Local agencies may formally partner with community organizations to ensure WIC clients have easy access to breast pumps and related pump supplies.

Regulations: CFR 246.11 c, e, CFR 246.14 c (10), USDA FNS WIC Breastfeeding Policy and Guidance (July 2016), Colorado WIC Policy

Procedure/Additional Guidance: Breast pumps and breastfeeding aids that directly support the initiation and continuation of breastfeeding are an allowable WIC cost. Partnering with community organizations to provide WIC breast pumps assists in providing early and easy access to pumps for WIC clients. This can help WIC clients to initiate and maintain breastfeeding, increasing the likelihood both parent and child receive health benefits associated with breastfeeding. Partner organizations include, but are not limited to: hospitals, health care provider clinics, local public health agency programs (e.g., Nurse Family Partnership).

Requirements ● A formal written agreement between the local WIC agency and partner organization must be in place (see below), reviewed and dated by both parties annually, and renewed with new signatures from both parties at least every two or three years, as indicated in the written agreement. ● WIC breast pumps may only be provided to individuals verified to be currently active on WIC (see below) and are eligible to receive a pump. ● WIC breast pumps cannot be issued to clients prenatally. ● A completed and signed Breast Pump/Aid Release Form must be provided to the local WIC agency for every pump issued to WIC clients for documentation purposes (recorded/uploaded into Compass). If issuing a multi-user loaned pump, the partner organization must obtain 2-3 individual contacts from the WIC client to be used if the pump is not returned. ● Information must be provided by the partner on proper assembly, usage, cleaning and maintenance of the pump and related supplies, as well as proper breast milk storage and who to contact for support. ● Multi-user breast pumps may be loaned to partner organizations to provide to verified WIC clients in- person, as deemed necessary for multi-user breast pump issuance within the Breastfeeding: Breast Pump Issuance policy. ● Single-user and manual breast pumps may be provided to partner organizations to give to verified WIC clients, as deemed necessary based on the issuance guidance within the Breastfeeding: Breast Pump Issuance policy. ● Either party can terminate the agreement at any time and request the pumps and related supplies be returned to the local WIC agency as soon as possible.

Formal Written Agreement In order for a partner organization to provide WIC pumps, the local WIC agency must create a formal written agreement renewed every two or three years, as indicated in the agreement, that is signed by both the local agency director and partner organization detailing the required procedures and requirements. Such documents may be in a memorandum of understanding (MOU), memorandum of agreement (MOA), interagency agreements, specialty services agreements, etc. The written agreement must contain: ● Full contact information for the local WIC agency and the partner organization. ● Purpose of the agreement and effective dates (start and end dates – must not exceed three years in length - and annual review dates). ● Responsibilities of each party in the agreement should include, but are not limited to: o How the partner organization obtains pumps, associated collection kits, etc., from the local WIC agency. o How the pumps will be stored in a secure location at the partner organization. o How the partner organization verifies the individual is currently active on WIC (see below) and is eligible to receive a pump. o A prohibition on issuing WIC breast pumps prenatally.

Colorado WIC Program Policies and Procedures Section 2: Nutrition Services Revised: 07/01/2026

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o Required duties the partner organization must complete when issuing a pump (e.g., Breast Pump Release Form signatures, using and maintaining/cleaning the pump, human milk storage, etc.). o Communication requirements between the local WIC agency and partner organization. o Client follow-up responsibilities after a pump is issued. ● Make and model of the pumps provided to the partner organization. ● Serial numbers of the pumps provided to the partner organization (optional - if designated pumps are assigned for the partner organization’s specific use). ● Signatures of both parties.

The local WIC agency must inform the State Office Nutrition Consultant and State Breastfeeding Coordinator and provide a copy of the signed agreement. The agreement must be reviewed annually and renewed every two or three years (with new signatures and dates) by both parties. If loaning multi-user breast pumps to the partner organization, the pumps issued must: ● Be in the local WIC agency’s serialized inventory in Compass; ● Have a WIC asset tag affixed to the pump; ● Have WIC contact information written on/affixed to the pump; ● Have a cleaning insert adhered to the inside of the pump case; and ● The local agency must document the serial numbers of the specific pumps loaned to the partner organizations and track the pumps.

WIC Client Verification For a partner organization to issue a breast pump, they must first verify the individual is currently an active WIC client. Due to data-sharing restrictions in place to protect and respect the privacy of clients, WIC staff may not provide information on individual clients to partner organizations. WIC clients can provide verification of their current WIC status to share with the partner organization by: ● Calling their WIC agency in the presence of the partner organization and requesting WIC staff to share their current WIC status; ● Showing the partner organization their current benefits available via the WICShopper; and/or ● Provide a printed copy of the verification of enrollment that the client obtained previously from WIC staff.