Price gouging baby formula won't be allowed in New York City, Mayor Eric Adams said Sunday after signing a new executive order declaring a state of emergency for the city.
A nationwide shortage of formula has parents and families scrambling to track down supplies as store shelves sit empty and communities turn to collection drives to redistribute available supplies.
"At its core, the nationwide infant formula shortage is a public health issue, triggered by failings in our economic and regulatory systems," Health Commissioner Ashwin Vasan said in the mayor's announcement.
The executive order, in place for 30 days, comes as nearly half of all tri-state retailers face a depleted stock of formula, according to the mayor's office. Adams said that NYC will now send out teams from the Department of Consumer and Worker Protection to visit stores throughout the city, checking prices on formula.
The mayor added that the emergency order is just the state, and that his staff is strategizing ways the city can do more to protect parents.
"It's not about pointing fingers, it's about lending a hand to mothers who need the baby formula," Adams said.
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President Joe Biden triggered the Defense Production Act last week to prioritize the delivery of formula ingredients to manufacturers. He also enacted Operation Fly Formula, with the first shipments of formula from overseas arriving this past weekend.
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The nationwide crisis stems from a voluntary recall and facility closure by one of the largest formula providers in country, Abbott Nutrition. Adams said that 43 percent of retailers in the tri-state area are completely out of formula. Nationally, the average is about 40 percent.
The mayor is calling on New Yorkers who witness price gouging to call 311 or file a complaint at nyc.gov/dcwp.
