How to Request Milk For Your Infant

Because we depend entirely on volunteer donors for our milk supply, the amount of milk available to dispense may vary and we must prioritize recipients. Our priority is to provide donor human milk to premature, critically ill, and medically fragile infants. Infants with a medical necessity for donor human milk are served first, and elective use of donor human milk for healthy infants is available and all infants with a medical need at the time are served. The responsibility for making decisions regarding medical necessity lies with the Medical Director, Medical Advisory Board, and the Clinical Coordinator, in consultation with the baby’s healthcare provider and a review of pertinent medical records.

A prescription from the infant’s healthcare provider is required for all outpatient milk dispensed.

All milk donations are entirely voluntary, and donors receive no compensation for their donations of breastmilk. However, the screening tests and processing of the milk are very costly. The Mothers’ Milk Bank of Alabama is a non-profit agency and charges a processing fee to offset the costs of screening donors, pasteurizing the milk, and lab testing. The current processing fee is $4.40/ounce with additional shipping fees.

The MMBAL does not currently file insurance claims for outpatient milk. The entire balance of processing fees is the responsibility of the recipient’s guarantor, and payment is expected at the time of service. The MMBAL understands the financial burden of caring for a medically fragile infant and uses a sliding scale fee system for those that provide the necessary information.

The MMBAL adheres to the guidelines set forth by the Human Milk Banking Association of North America. Please contact us for more information about our screening and pasteurization processes.

To order milk as a new customer, submit the Outpatient Recipient Record. For all future orders, submit the Outpatient Purchase Order. The MMBAL will be in contact will all new customers within two business days. If the MMBAL is unable to fill existing Outpatient Orders, the MMBAL will notify the recipient by the next business day.