Babies (human)
Baby formula shortage costing parents: 'It's a desperate situation for many families'
As the nationwide baby formula shortage has escalated, parents have been confronted with familiar problems seen throughout the pandemic: purchase restrictions, hoarding and price gouging.
Bailey SchulzUSA TODAY
Ashlyn Hensley was getting desperate.
In March, after scanning the aisles at the local Publix, Walmart, Winn-Dixie and six other stores for baby formula for her son, Jaxon, she returned home empty-handed. Online stores had also run dry.
Jaxon’s allergies require a specific formula, and it's difficult for Hensley to get her hands on it. The WIC program – the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children – helps cover costs for the specialty formula but can't make more product appear out of thin air.
“I've never really thought, as a new mom, I would be worrying about not being able to feed my baby,” Hensley said.