In a commentary published November 28, 2007 on Concurring Opinions, Sarah Waldeck explores the facts and unintended consequences surrounding a recent decision by the Massachusetts appeals court.

In a 26-page ruling titled, Currier v. National Board of Medical Examiners, Judge Katzmann ordered the National Board of Medical Examiners (NMBE) to give additional break time to Sophie Currier so that she could express her breasts during a medical licensing exam.

“This was undoubtedly a victory for Currier, but what about for other breastfeeding mothers,” asks Waldeck.

“I usually applaud policies and legal results that help women balance families and careers. But here I’m concerned that Currier’s legal victory will ultimately undermine the goal of widespread accommodation of breastfeeding employees,” said Waldeck.

For those unfamiliar with the case: Currier was scheduled to take a 370-question multiple choice test. The test is taken on a computer and questions are distributed in eight one-hour blocks; once the block ends, a student cannot revisit that portion of the test. Students have forty-five minutes of break time; they can allocate it between the blocks in any manner they choose. No food or drink is allowed in the testing room. Because Currier has learning disabilities, the NBME granted her double time and a separate test-taking room. Currier’s testing would thus take place over two days, with forty-five minutes of break time each day.

Initially, Currier asked for an additional sixty minutes of break time each day for the purpose of pumping milk. The NBME refused this request and offered the following accommodations:

• permission to express milk in a private room at the testing center during the allotted break time;
• permission to bring food and drink into the testing room;
• permission to pump milk while in her separate testing room;
• the option to leave the test center to breastfeed during the allotted time.

Waldeck describes the first two accommodations as worthwhile because they go to the heart of Currier’s problem by ensuring that Currier will have adequate time to pump, eat, and go to the bathroom during the course of the day. But Waldeck describes the second two accommodations as “utter worthlessness” and questions why the first two accommodations weren’t “good enough”?

Waldeck’s fear is that this case sends the message that accommodating breastfeeding mothers is difficult, when it’s not, and that Currier will end up as a poster child for those who oppose these efforts.