08/13/2026
PLEASE READ THIS!!
If you’ve been following along recently you may understand that UHC - United Healthcare is beginning September 1 to only reimburse and pay for the mother when seen for lactation coverage. When a lactation consultant sees a family for breastfeeding help it is impossible to only look at the mother because it take two to breastfeed. There is a baby who is needing to be assessed for latch, oral function, etc. But, UHC says - no - only the mother will be covered. This will greatly affect the ability of us to be sustainable in private practice.
If you have the energy and this enrages you that here again families will be left behind below is a template for a letter you can write and customize and send to the CT insurance commissioner. Please like, share and send this to all your mom friends, mothers, grandmothers, fathers, etc. who believe that support is crucial to helping families during the postpartum period when you are trying to get breastfeeding underway!
I APPRECIATE YOU!!!
VERSION B — For parents and patients
Use this version if you are a parent, patient, or family member
You do not need to be a healthcare provider to file a complaint with your state’s Department of Insurance. If you or your baby is covered by UnitedHealthcare, you are exactly the person regulators want to hear from. Replace the [GREY FIELDS] and add your own story where prompted.
[Your Name]
[Street Address] • [City, State ZIP]
[Email] • [Phone]
[UnitedHealthcare Member ID, if you have one]
[Date]
[State] Department of Insurance
Attn: Consumer Complaints
[Department mailing address or online complaint portal]
Re: Complaint regarding UnitedHealthcare’s coverage change for lactation services (HCPCS S9443), effective September 1, 2026
To the Department of Insurance:
My name is [Your Name], and I am a [UnitedHealthcare member / parent of a UnitedHealthcare-covered child] in [Your City, State]. I am writing because UnitedHealthcare has announced a change to how it pays for lactation support, and I am worried it will take away help that families like mine depend on. I am asking the Department to look into whether this is legal and to step in before it takes effect on September 1, 2026.
What is changing.
UnitedHealthcare currently treats lactation support as preventive care, which under the Affordable Care Act is supposed to be covered without extra cost to families. Starting September 1, 2026, UnitedHealthcare says it will no longer pay when a lactation visit is billed for the baby, only for the mother, and will pay for only one session per day. The problem is that lactation help is care for two people at once: the parent and the baby. The lactation consultant weighs the baby, checks how the baby feeds, and looks for problems in the baby that affect feeding. Paying for only half of that visit means families get less help, or none.
Why this matters to my family.
[This is the most important part. In your own words, tell your story. Did a lactation consultant help you and your baby? What problem did they catch or solve (feeding trouble, weight gain, pain, a tongue tie, low supply)? What would it have meant if that visit had not been covered? Two or three honest sentences from real life matter more than anything else in this letter.]
Skilled lactation support in the first weeks after birth helps prevent serious problems: babies who are not gaining weight, dehydration, jaundice, painful infections for the parent, and emergency room visits and hospital stays for both. It is low-cost care that prevents high-cost problems. Cutting it does not save money in the long run. It just moves the cost to families and to the rest of the healthcare system.
There is one more gap that worries me: in some families, only the baby is covered by UnitedHealthcare. For those families, refusing to pay for the baby’s visit could mean no covered lactation care at all.
What I am asking the Department to do.
I respectfully ask the Department of Insurance to:
1. Investigate whether this change is allowed under the Affordable Care Act’s requirement to cover preventive care for women and infants without cost-sharing, and under [State] insurance law.
2. Step in before September 1, 2026, and ask UnitedHealthcare to hold off on this change while it is being reviewed, so families are not harmed in the meantime.
3. Protect lactation support as covered preventive care for families in our state.
Thank you for your time and for protecting families who rely on this care.
Sincerely,
[Your Name]
