greetings to all!
i've been following the "free" formula and baby friendly thread.  at the
orlando conference a few weeks ago, cindy turner-maffei spoke to this.  she
suggested that you get in good with someone in purchasing to find out the real
picture.  she suggests that there is no such thing as "free" formula.  while
in one hospital's L&D dept. may have thought the formula was free and nurses
do not charge the infants account, NICU or peds found out they were charged 4X
market rate for THEIR formula.  or, nipples or pacifiers were being charged at
10X market rate.  we heard about how most hospitals (going for baby friendly)
uncovered unscrupulous marketing techniques, and that when hospitals actually
paid for the formula they used, then the total cost to formula companies
actually decreased dramatically, resulting in major savings to your hospital.

lena camperlengo
in florida, where there are no baby-friendly hospitals (yet)