City Cast Las Vegas logo
August 1, 2024

Why the Breast Milk Industry Is Running Dry in Nevada

City Cast Las Vegas

Why the Breast Milk Industry Is Running Dry in Nevada

00:00:00
View all City Cast Las Vegas episodes

In 2017, Elena Medo, the “mother of the breast milk industry,” moved to Boulder City and set up Medolac, her third breast milk company — a bank that paid women for breast milk donations, and processed sterilized, shelf-stable breast milk for premature babies in hospitals. But paying women for breast milk (rather than receiving it as a donation) is controversial. And after facing lawsuits from a competitor in this fiercely contested industry, Medolac is now shuttered. Medo’s bank is being auctioned off this week. Did Nevada just lose a life-saving resource for hospitalized babies? Or is the for-profit model fundamentally flawed? Co-host Sarah Lohman talks with Elena Medo to learn more about why she started Medolac and what’s next for the industry.

Want to get in touch? Follow us @CityCastVegas on Instagram, or email us at lasvegas@citycast.fm. You can also call or text us at 702-514-0719.

For more Las Vegas news, make sure to sign up for our morning newsletter, Hey Las Vegas.

Looking to advertise on City Cast Las Vegas? Check out our options for podcast and newsletter ads at citycast.fm/advertise.

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Subscribe To Our Newsletter

Hey Las Vegas

Stay connected to City Cast Las Vegas and get ready to join the local conversation.

Can't subscribe? Turn off your ad blocker and try again.

Latest Episodes

See all
August 28

Dolly Parton's Literary Legacy, a Vegas Apartment Shortage, and Good News Friday

Nevada's low literacy rates among the valley's youth are always a hot-button issue as it relates to our education system as a whole, and...

City Cast Las Vegas podcast episode art
August 27

Trump's Budget Cuts Threaten Nevada's Outdoors, CCSD Using Flock Cameras, and Our Favorite Pastries in Las Vegas

Trump's budget cuts to the National Park Service, the Bureau of Land Management, and the U.S. Forest Service are threatening Southern Nev...

City Cast Las Vegas podcast episode art
August 26

Nevada Sues Feds Over Water Cuts, New Life for Water Street, and Does It Actually Suck To Live in Nevada?

Nevada just filed the first lawsuit challenging the Trump administration's Colorado River plan that could cut the state's already tiny wa...

City Cast Las Vegas podcast episode art
August 25

Unraveling the Hope for Prisoners Scandal, Raiders Ask for $75 Million, and Remembering the Riviera

The founder of Hope for Prisoners is now ⁠facing nine felonies⁠ and 11 gross misdemeanors, including sexual assault charges alleging he u...

City Cast Las Vegas podcast episode art
August 24

Why a Confession May Not Be Enough In the Tupac Murder Trial

Thirty years after Tupac Shakur was shot and killed on the Las Vegas Strip, the trial of the man accused of orchestrating his murder is f...

City Cast Las Vegas podcast episode art
August 23

‘Your City Could Be Better’: How Portland Made Its River Cool — Presented By City Cast Las Vegas

How often are you out in nature in Las Vegas? It’s not always easy to know which natural resources are clean and safe to use in an urban...

City Cast Las Vegas podcast episode art
August 21

Lawmakers Silent on Energy Rate Change, Nevada's Illegal U.S. Attorney, and Good News Friday

NV Energy's controversial daily demand charge is set to go into effect Jan. 1, and when state lawmakers had a chance to advance a bill to...

City Cast Las Vegas podcast episode art
August 20

Is Amazon Shredding Rare Books in Las Vegas? Plus, Fire Devastates the Arts District and What's Next for Cirque on the Strip

A fire tore through two beloved Arts District businesses this week. We dig into what Raw Remedies and Analog Dope mean to the Arts Distri...

City Cast Las Vegas podcast episode art
August 19

Everything Worth Stopping for on the Drive from Vegas to L.A.

Most Las Vegans know the drive to Los Angeles all too well, whether you're escaping the heat, visiting family or just craving the ocean....

City Cast Las Vegas podcast episode art
August 18

Are Nevada's Red Flag Laws Doing Enough for Gun Safety?

Las Vegas has already seen more officer-involved shootings in 2026 than it did in all of 2025, and two high-profile incidents in the past...

City Cast Las Vegas podcast episode art