GROVEPORT, Ohio — Kelly Cunningham was down to the last few feedings for her son, Dawson.
In a desperate plea for help, she reached out to her pediatrician's office.
Unlike others his age, 1-year-old Dawson can't drink cow's milk. He's allergic to dairy.
For needed nutrition and calories -- Kelly Cunningham supplements her son's diet with a special type of formula. That formula, EleCare, was part of the Abbott voluntary recall.
There was only one other option Dawson could stomach: PurAmino.
“This Nutramigen PurAmino that he's on now is actually our last resort,” she said. “There's nothing else after this.”
On Monday, she was down to her final can.
“I was heartbroken. I didn't know what to do.”
She couldn't find it anywhere that accepts WIC, which is the only way they can afford it.
She called her son's pediatrician's office -- and a nurse took matters into her own hands.
“She said, ‘let me see if I can track any down for you,’” she explained. “So she made a few phone calls and about an hour later she called me back and she said, ‘I have great news.’”
The nurse had delivered.
“When I went up to get it from her, I was just in tears and I just hugged her because she had not only – normally his formula comes in four, she had eight cans.”
That’s enough to last them almost a month.
Cunningham wants clarity on a timeline, and to know why this is happening.
“We need a solid answer on when we're going to be able to feed our babies.”
Abbott provided an update on its website on Friday that it is working with USDA and WIC agencies -- paying rebates on competitive products in states where Abbott holds the WIC contract, when its popular formula version, Similac, is not available.
These rebates will be available until September.