The WIC Website is the official web page for the WIC program. On this web page, answers to most of the questions one may have in mind about the program can be gotten from there. The WIC program is a federal assistance program with the aim to safeguard the health of low-income Women, Infants, and Children up to the age of five, who are at nutritional risk by providing nutritious foods to supplement diets, information on healthy eating and referrals to health care. Getting interesting? Read on for more information about how the WIC program and the website really work.
WIC Website
On the WIC Website, the information about WIC is stated that there that WIC is a Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC) that provides federal grants to states for supplemental foods, health care referrals, and nutrition education for low-income pregnant, breastfeeding, and non-breastfeeding postpartum women, and to infants and children up to age five who are found to be at nutritional risk.
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The program also makes use of the EBT card to carry the food benefits given to the participants of the program. EBT is an Electronic Benefits Transfer that authorizes the transfer of funds from a federal account to an approved retailer or store for payment of permitted food items purchased. The EBT comes in the form of a card that replaced the use of vouchers & coupons and can be used like a debit card.
The WIC program focuses its service on a certain category of people. They are;
- Infants (up to 1st birthday).
- Toddlers and children (up to their 5th birthday).
- Pregnant women (through pregnancy and up to 6 weeks after birth or after pregnancy ends).
- Breastfeeding women (up to infant’s 1st birthday).
- Non-breastfeeding postpartum women (up to 6 months after the birth of an infant or after pregnancy ends).
Males are not included in this program. However, fathers and grandfathers can bring in their children and infants that are in need of the assistance the WIC program provides.
There are some places where the programs’ benefits can be easily accessed and utilized. Some of the locations where WIC programs operate on are;
- Hospitals.
- Schools.
- County health departments.
- Mobile clinics (vans).
- Community centers.
- Public housing sites.
- Migrant health centers and camps.
- Indian health services facilities.
In these above-mentioned locations, WIC carries out its duties and roles there. This is because, in these locations, there are great numbers of potential benefactors like children, infants, pregnant women, breastfeeding mothers can be found Here.
WIC Eligibility
Eligibility to receive benefits from this program is restricted to four requirements. These requirements include;
- Women or/ and Children: Pregnant, postpartum, and breastfeeding women, infants, and children up to age 5 are eligible.
- A state residency requirement: must be a resident of the state you are applying to.
- Nutritional risk: must be determined to be a nutritional risk by a health professional.
- Income: the income level of the family of the applicant must not exceed the 185% federal poverty line. This income used in the calculations is the income received before the deduction of taxes.If a person can meet up with these above-listed requirements, the person undoubtedly would be eligible for benefits from the program. That person can apply and start getting assistance from the program. However, the program may not readily cater to every applicant because of funds. This places a lot of the eligible applicants on the waiting waitlist.
The applicants on this list are picked according to how urgent their needs are and are attended to as soon as the program can cater for more.
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WIC Application
On the WIC Website, you would be directed on how to apply for the benefits of the program. You will be told that to apply to be a WIC participant, you will need to contact your state or local agency to set up an appointment. You can contact the agency by going to the office in person or calling in to book your appointment. The address of all the agencies in the country and all the numbers and contact to reach them are all linked to the website.
When booking the appointment, you would be told what to bring along with you to the meeting/ appointment. From the outcome of the meeting, you would be made to start your application processes and filling out the necessary forms
WIC Benefits
The following benefits are provided to WIC participants;
- Supplemental nutritious food packages.
- Breastfeeding promotion and support.
- Nutrition education and counseling at WIC clinics.
- Screening and referrals to other health, welfare, and social services.
These are some of the benefits one can get from the WIC program and they are listed on the WIC Website. Some of the ways in which the program has really helped benefactors and the country at large are in the following areas;
- WIC reduces fetal deaths and infant mortality.
- WIC reduces low birth weight rates and increases the duration of pregnancy.
- WIC improves the growth of nutritionally at-risk infants and children.
- WIC decreases the incidence of iron deficiency anemia in children.
- WIC improves the dietary intake of pregnant and postpartum women and improves weight gain in pregnant women.
- Pregnant women participating in WIC receive prenatal care earlier.
- Children enrolled in WIC are more likely to have a regular source of medical care and have more up to date immunizations.
- WIC helps get children ready to start school: children who receive WIC benefits demonstrate improved intellectual development.
- WIC significantly improves children’s diets.
These are some of the areas where the WIC program has made significant impacts on and beneficiaries have testified to these.
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WIC Food
The food packages of the programs are all different for the different stages of age for the children, infants, and also for the adults. The food packages include;
- Breakfast Cereal.
- Infant Cereal.
- Infant Food Fruits & Vegetables.
- Infant Food Meat.
- Infant Formula.
- Exempt Infant Formula.
- Milk.
- Cheese.
- Tofu.
- Soy-Based Beverage.
- Mature Legumes.
- Peanut Butter.
- Fruits & Vegetables.
- Canned Fish.
- Whole Wheat Bread and Other Whole Grains.
- Juice.
- Eggs.
- WIC-eligible Nutritionals.
- Yogurt.
Each of these foods has a specific requirement that the program supports. All these pieces of information can be accessed on the website Here
WIC Partners
The Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) collaborates with a lot of organizations to successfully carry out the mission of the program itself. Some of the WIC partners are federal agencies, advocacy groups, non-profit organizations, technology companies, farmers, food manufacturers, vendors, and many more stakeholders.
The partnership WIC has is critical to promoting and supporting the mission of the WIC program and is a part of the strong, ongoing commitment to provide benefits to WIC participants and their families. The WIC program invites stakeholders and health care professionals in order to create a national environment that increases awareness of how WIC can help.
One thing the WIC program recognizes is that coordinating services and maximizing resources can minimize duplication of effort from the program and similar other programs and also have a positive impact on their participants (benefactors) and families.
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