Baby2Baby CEOs Kelly Sawyer Patricof and Norah Weinstein are teaming up with the state of New York to support maternal health and newborns — a partnership they hope will serve as a model for other states around the country.

New York is partnering with the national nonprofit to provide free newborn supply kits to families in need. Kits include items like diapers, hygiene items and breastfeeding supplies. It’s part of a $2.2 billion commitment the state has made to help provide greater access to affordable childcare. The investment is part of Governor Kathy Hochul’s 2026 budget, which sees $9 million going to the nonprofit. 

“We were able to invite Governor Hochul into our warehouse in L.A., into our headquarters. She visited us in December, and after just a few minutes, packing the kits herself and having the program resonate with her, she made the decision to put $9 million into the state budget so that we can provide 100,000 of these kits to every mother giving birth on Medicaid next year across the state of New York,” Weinstein says.

In the United States, one in two families struggle to afford diapers, according to Baby2Baby, a statistic that continues to drive Patricof and Weinstein. Diapers are the fourth highest expenditure for low-income families after food, rent and utilities, the nonprofit says. Under Patricof and Weinstein’s leadership, Baby2Baby has created a diaper manufacturing system that produces the product at a cost 80% lower than typical retail prices, according to the organization.

“We’re able to distribute five times as many, which is what has led us to distributing 250 million diapers,” Patricof says. 

Nationwide, Baby2Baby supports more than one million families and children each year. Since 2011, Patricof and Weinstein have led the expansion of Baby2Baby, providing over half a billion critical items to children in need. The partnership with New York is their latest program to support low-income parents.