WIC PARTICIPATION DROPS

More than 8 million low-income pregnant women, new mothers, infants, and children up to age 5 received WIC benefits in 2014 — including food, nutrition education, and breastfeeding support. According to a new USDA report, in 2014 WIC served an estimated 54.8% of eligible women, infants, and children, down from 59.3% in 2013.

The program benefitted 80% of eligible infants, but just 46% of eligible children ages 1 to 5.  From 2005–2014, WIC’s overall participation rate (participants compared to those eligible to receive benefits) has fluctuated within the range of 55 to 64%, reaching a high of 63.5% in 2011. Participation has been declining since 2011, reaching a low in 2014. (Later data are not available, but the total number of participants has dropped in the last three years).

Source: USDA, 9/29/17, WIC Declines

ADMINISTRATION MAY REVIEW ALL WELFARE PROGRAMS

Trump administration officials are mulling an executive order that would instruct federal agencies to review low-income assistance programs, including SNAP and WIC,  as part of an effort to make sweeping changes to the country’s welfare system. The White House has begun circulating a draft order to federal agencies for comment. The draft order calls on agencies to review existing regulations and propose new rules that conform to a set of broad welfare principles, including tighter work requirements that encourage recipients to shift back into the labor force. It also calls for streamlining or eliminating duplicative services and establishing metrics for holding agencies accountable for program performance.

Source: Politico, 10/2/17, Welfare Review

WIC WORKS AT FARMERS MARKETS

WIC participants can redeem two types of WIC benefits at farmers’ markets for fruits and vegetables. The Farmers’ Market Nutrition Program (FMNP) provides eligible participants between $10-30 per year in benefits that can be spent exclusively at farmers’ markets. In addition, WIC participants receive paper cash or electronic vouchers that they can use to buy fruit and vegetables at stores authorized to accept WIC benefits, and, in 28 states, at authorized farmers’ markets.  Vouchers are worth $11 per month for pregnant, postpartum, and breastfeeding women, and $8 per month for children. But the vast majority of vouchers are redeemed at stores, not farmers’ markets. Researchers in California—the largest State WIC program in the Nation— found that 80% of farmers’ market managers surveyed agreed that getting authorization from the state WIC agency to accept vouchers is far more difficult than obtaining FMNP authorization. Farmers also complained about how hard it is to get  reimbursement for vouchers from the state.

Source: USDA, 7/3/17, WIC at Farmers Markets

Proposed federal budget not all cuts to nutrition programs

While the President’s proposed budget calls for reducing SNAP by $192 billion over the next decade, it does not cut all nutrition programs as drastically. It provides for:

• $13.1 billion for the National School Lunch Program (an increase of $659 million from FY 2017);

• $4.8 billion for the School Breakfast Program (up $287 million);

• $3.9 billion for the Child and Adult Care Food Program (up $261 million);

• $640 million for the Summer Food Service Program (up $50 million);

• $23 million for Summer Electronic Benefit Transfer Demonstration Projects (same as FY 2017);

• $297 million for the Fresh Fruit and Vegetable Program (up $168 million);

• $8.4 million for Farm to School, with $5 million for grants (mandatory funding), and $3.4 million for USDA’s Farm to School Team (down $4.16 million for USDA’s Farm to School Team);

• $17 million for Team Nutrition and Healthier USDA School Challenge (down $20 million);

• $6.2 billion for WIC, to support an anticipated caseload of 7.2 million women, infants, and children (slightly higher than the recent caseload); and

• No funding for school meal equipment grants, which were funded at $35 million in FY 2017

Source: Food Research & Action Center, 5/25/17, Trump Budget

OBESITY DROPS FOR WIC KIDS

Obesity among low-income children (ages 2-4 years) enrolled in WIC dropped from 15.9% in 2010 to 14.5% in 2014.  In addition, 34 of 56 WIC state agencies reported modest decreases in obesity among young children. The findings come from a joint study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the USDA. Obesity prevalence varied by state, ranging from 8.2% in Utah to 20% in Virginia. The study’s authors noted several factors that may have contributed to the drop in obesity:

• In 2009, USDA redesigned WIC food packages to align with updated U.S. dietary guidelines. This change led to improved dietary quality of WIC food packages, better nutrition education, and more health care referrals.
• National, state, and local childhood obesity programs helped raise awareness among parents, early care and education providers, community and business leaders, health care providers, and public health officials.
• CDC provided funding, training, and guidance to states, local health agencies, and daycare providers to help promote successful childhood obesity prevention strategies.

Source: CDC, 11/17/16, Obesity

POLICY CHANGES COULD REDUCE CHILDREN’S FOOD INSECURITY

Replacing the maximum SNAP allotment with a benefit that reflects the real cost of a healthy diet, expanding WIC eligibility to age 6, and maintaining the Community Eligibility Provision (CEP) of the National School Lunch (NSLP) and Breakfast Programs (SBP) may effectively address the needs of many families who experience food insecurity and increase access to healthy options, according to a new policy brief released by Children's HealthWatch. Using simulation modeling techniques, researchers looked at three policy changes currently being debated in Congress. By replacing the Thrifty Food Plan with the Low-Cost Plan, they found that 5.3% of SNAP-participant families with children who are currently food insecure would become fully food secure over the course of one year. If WIC’s age eligibility rose to 6, food insecurity among WIC-eligible 5-year-olds and their families would drop by 1.5% reduction; this means 13,208 families would become fully food secure in the first year of the study.

Source: Children’s Health Watch,  10/10/16, Children's Food Insecurity

MODELING A BETTER PLAN TO REDUCE HUNGER

New research using innovative simulation modelling techniques demonstrates that SNAP, WIC, and School Lunch Program are key components of a plan to reduce food insecurity. The research finds that:

• If SNAP benefits were increased by basing the calculation on the Low Cost Food Plan, SNAP-participant families with children would have an 8% increase in purchasing power for food. This would result in 5.3% of currently food-insecure people in families with children becoming food secure.
• If WIC age-eligibility were increased to age 6, 2.2% of newly eligible 5-year-olds’ families would increase their food purchasing power. This change would result in 1.5% of WIC-eligible food-insecure 5-year-olds and their families becoming food secure.
• Over 13% of all children whose family food purchasing power was increased by their participation in the National School Lunch and Breakfast programs shifted into a higher income-to-poverty-ratio category. This resulted in 1.7% of food-insecure families of students participating in school lunches and 1% of food-insecure families of students participating in school breakfasts to become fully food secure in 2014.

Source: Children’s Health Watch, 9/20/16, Modeling Change

WIC GAP COULD LEAVE SOME KIDS HUNGRY

University of Missouri researcher have found that 5% of the estimated 900,000 children that use WIC could be going hungry because they turn 5 years old before going into kindergarten where they could get school meals. By law, children are eligible for WIC assistance only until they turn age five. It would require an act of Congress to get the requirements changed. The U.S. Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry passed a bill in January  to have eligibility end at 6 years old.

Source: KOMU TV, 9/20/16, WIC Gap

CHILD FOOD INSECURITY HITS NEW LOW

USDA says that food insecurity among American children has fallen to record low levels.  A new report finds children were food insecure at times during the year in 7.8% of U.S. households with children (3.0 million households), down significantly from 9.4% in 2014. The estimated percentage of all U.S. households that were food insecure in 2015 also declined significantly from 2014, to 12.7%, continuing a downward trend from a high of 14.9% in 2011. But the 2015 figure was still above the 2007 prerecessionary level of 11.1%. Very low food security dropped to 5% in 2015 from a peak of 5.7%. Nearly 60% of food-insecure households reported that they had participated in one or more of the three largest Federal nutrition assistance programs (SNAP; WIC; and National School Lunch Program).

Source: USDA, 9/7/16, Food Insecurity

MANY ELIGIBLE FOR WIC DON’T ENROLL

WIC provides access to high-nutrition foods for kids, mothers, and pregnant women with incomes of 185% or less of poverty. But a study from the University of New Hampshire's Carsey School of Public Policy finds only about 43% of those eligible for WIC benefits receive them. Among eligible families, receipt of WIC benefits was more likely among families in which the head of household was poorer, less educated, non-white, unmarried, or unemployed. About half of eligible families living at less than 50% of the poverty line and one-third living between 100% and 185% of poverty received WIC benefits. Participation in WIC was greater in rural than urban areas (46 versus 42%) with rural foreign-born families reported higher rates of WIC receipt than their urban counterparts (54% versus 44%).

Source: Carsey School of Public Policy, 7/20/16, WIC Enrollment

THE END OF COMPETITIVE BIDDING COULD DRIVE UP WIC COSTS

The Education Committee bill would change WIC in ways that cater to corporate interests and could make the program less cost-effective. For decades, WIC has used competitive bidding to reduce the cost of infant formula and some other foods for infants. The bill would require states that want to use competitive bidding to jump through a series of hoops that appear designed to discourage competitive bidding.  (Gerber Foods, which controls the majority of the U.S. market for infant foods other than formula and is a subsidiary of Nestlé, has been lobbying for limits on competitive bidding for infant foods other than formula.)

Source: Center for Budget & Policy Priorities, 5/17/16, WIC Costs

WIC CHANGES IMPROVE TODDLER’S NUTRITION

A change to the WIC nutrition program improved the diets of millions of young children in low-income families, a new study says. Researchers compared the eating habits of nearly 1,200 2- to 4-year-olds in low-income households before and after WIC was changed in 2009. With the revamp, more fruits, vegetables, whole grains and low-fat milk were included in the WIC food voucher package.

The change improved the diets for the approximately 4 million children in the program, according to the University of California (UC) study published.

Source: Health Day, 4/7/16, WIC Changes Work

NEW WIC RULES MAKE ACCESS EASIER

he shopping experience for WIC participants should improve under a new USDA rule that requires states to transition from paper benefits to EBT systems by Oct. 1, 2020. The WIC EBT system replaces paper food checks or vouchers with a card that is used for food benefit issuance and redemption at authorized WIC stores. In 2016, Congress appropriated $220 million help state agencies fully fund the transition from paper benefits to EBT. The transition from paper benefits to EBT systems allows WIC participants to shop for items as needed rather than requiring them to purchase all items in one trip or lose the remaining benefits. Implementing EBT will also reduce checkout times and potential stigma associated with using food benefits. Additionally, WIC participants will no longer need to separate their WIC foods from their other grocery items.

Source: USDA, 2/29/16, WIC Rule

SPENDING & TAX BILLS ADDRESS HUNGER & POVERTY

House and Senate leaders have reached agreement on a FY 16 Omnibus Appropriations bill and a Tax Extender package. The tax bill will come to a vote in the House on Thursday (12/17), the spending bill on Friday. The Senate is expected to combine the two bills into a single vote, presumably on Friday. The appropriations bill addresses three food-related issues:

•   $6.350 billion for the WIC: This is expected to support the anticipated caseload but falls short of the $6.623 billion in the President’s proposed budget, which was the same amount appropriated last year.

•   School Nutrition Standards: The bill maintains the language from prior appropriations legislation that allows waivers of the whole grain requirement and postpones full implementation of the sodium requirement

•   $23 million for the summer EBT program: This is $7 million more than the 2015 enacted level. Participation is not limited to certain communities as it was last year.

Reauthorization for the Child Nutrition Act is not included in this bill.  It will probably be considered early next year.

The Tax Extender bill makes permanent the Child Care, Earned Income, and American Opportunity (college expenses) tax credits.

Source: Food Research Action Council, 12/16/15, Food Issues in Tax & Spending Bills; Center for Budget & Policy Priorities, 12/16/15, Tax Credits

GOV’T FOOD PROGRAMS COULD DO MORE TO DETER OBESITY

SNAP and WIC have greatly improved low-income families’ access to food, but they could do more to promote healthier nutritional choices and combat obesity and their beneficiaries. SNAP recipients need more education and incentives when it comes to making healthy food choices and more information about nutritional content and lower prices for healthier foods like fruits and vegetables, which could be done through technology and social media. Innovations in EBT technology could be harnessed to help participants make healthier choices and track their food purchases. Another approach might be to distribute SNAP benefits several times a month rather than just once.

Source: Huffington Post, 10/8/15, SNAP & Obesity

Expanding WIC to age 6 proposed

The Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) provides healthy food for at-risk pregnant women and children up to age 5.  This program has been proven to save us money in the long run - every $1 spent on WIC saves $3 in health care costs sometime down the road.

The reasoning behind ending the program when a child turns five, they start school and will be able to get breakfast and lunch at school.  But we all know that kids don't start school on their fifth birthday, even though that's when their WIC benefits end.  For some children, it could be eight months between their fifth birthday and their first day of school.

Read more about the proposal to extend WIC benefits to the sixth birthday here.

SENATE COMMITTEE APPROVES FOOD FUNDING

The Senate Appropriations Committee has advanced a bill to fund the USDA and FDA for the next fiscal year.  The bill contains $20.5 billion in discretionary funding, including WIC.  The total is  $65 million less than the current level and $1.1 billion less than President Obama requested. The bulk of the measure contains $123.3 billion in mandatory funding, including funds for SNAP. The committee’s bill included an amendment that would relax school lunch rules on whole grain products and sodium.

Source: The Hill, 7/16/15, Senate Action

WIC WORKS

Extensive research has found the WIC program to be a cost-effective investment that improves the nutrition and health of low-income families and leads to healthier infants, more nutritious diets, and better health care for children, and subsequently to higher academic achievement for students. Over four decades, researchers have investigated WIC's effects on key measures of child health such as birth weight, infant mortality, diet quality and nutrient intake, initiation and duration of breastfeeding, cognitive development and learning, immunization, use of health services, and childhood anemia. Their findings:

▪      Women who participate in WIC give birth to healthier babies who are more likely to survive infancy.

▪      WIC supports more nutritious diets and better infant feeding practices. WIC participants now buy and eat more fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and low-fat dairy products, following the introduction of new WIC food packages that are more closely aligned to current dietary guidance.

▪      Low-income children participating in WIC are just as likely to be immunized as more affluent children, and are more likely to receive preventive medical care than other low-income children.

▪      Children whose mothers participated in WIC while pregnant scored higher on assessments of mental development at age 2 than similar children whose mothers did not participate, and they later performed better on reading assessments while in school.

Source: Center for Budget and Policy Priorities, 5/4/15, WIC Works

WIC helps and and also has unintended consequence

The Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act of 2010, which authorized funds for WIC, is set to expire on September 30, 2015. The reauthorization process gives policymakers an opportunity to reexamine the program’s operation and effectiveness and consider improvements. A comprehensive 2012 review of WIC research conducted for USDA concluded that WIC participation directly affects participants’ health and nutrition through improved diets (including increased iron density, fewer added sugars, and a greater variety of foods) and greater use of health care services. It also found that requirements that WIC-authorized stores stock at least two varieties of fruits, two varieties of vegetables, one whole-grain cereal, and lower fat milk improved availability of healthy foods in these stores increased access to healthy foods for the entire community, not just for WIC participants. But the study also found that WIC program regulations might have had the unintended effect of raising prices and limiting availability of non-WIC brands of infant formula in some retail food stores.

Source: USDA, 4/6/15, WIC Benefits

WIC CRITICAL FOR EARLY CHILDHOOD DEVELOPMENT

Evidence continues to mount that lack of adequate food, stable housing, health care, and other essentials in infancy and early childhood can affect children’s brain development, with long-term consequences for their physical, mental, academic, and economic well-being. Extensive research over the past 40 years shows that WIC contributes to positive developmental and health outcomes for low-income women and young children.  In particular, WIC participation is associated with healthier births, more nutritious diets, stronger connections to preventive health care, and improved cognitive development.

Source: Center for Budget and Policy Priorities, 3/16/15, WIC Benefits