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Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner has signed a significant piece of legislation into law that will make nursing mothers feel a little more at ease in the airport.
Rauner signed legislation on Sunday that requires the state's major airports - including Chicago's O'Hare International and Midway International - to have lactation rooms by 2017.
Regional airports in the state must add private rooms when building new terminals or renovating existing ones.
While many airports have reacted proactively in adding lactation rooms, it was a welcome sight to see the Gov. sign the bill into law in the wake of a series of incidents over the last year in which breastfeeding mothers were treated poorly.
In one instance, a woman from Austin, Texas could not find the one nursing station open at Los Angeles International Airport and ended up paying $50 for a pass into a United Airlines lounge. The woman said she was then asked to use a janitor's closet for discretion, although a United spokesperson said she was asked if she wanted to use the closet for more privacy and that it was not mandatory.
Chicago's aviation commissioner has previously said O'Hare plans to install three lactation rooms by the end of the year, according to the Associated Press.
U.S. Rep. Tammy Duckworth of Illinois is pushing federal legislation to require large and medium airports nationwide to provide lactation rooms, the AP added.
New York's three major airports earlier this year added lactation pods as well.
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