Colorado's Diana DeGette Leads Hearing Over Nationwide Baby Formula Shortage

(CBS4) - As a new shipment of baby formula arrives in the United States from Germany, U.S. Rep. Diana DeGette, representing Colorado's 1st District, led a hearing today with the FDA and the Abbott factory at the center of the formula shortage. As CBS4 Political Specialist Shaun Boyd reported, DeGette is leading a federal inquiry into the shortage.

DeGette is the Chair of the House Energy and Commerce Committee's Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee.

"Abbott is not blameless. The company appears to have neglected essential manufacturing and cleaning processes," she said.

"Abbott actually did start remediating the plant, but it was so bad. We met with them yesterday. There were so many steps since day one - they are still not ready to go," said Dr. Robert Califf, an FDA Commissioner.

DeGette says the federal government is partly to blame for the shortage after giving one company, Abbott, the sole contract for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) the federal program that subsidizes formula for about a million low-income moms.

The FDA says the plant will be ready to go in a few weeks.