Posted October 4, 2013
Almost 9 million low-income mothers and children receiving benefits under the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC), could see their funding cut off due to the government shutdown, according to a CBS News article available here.
The WIC program gives grants to states for “supplemental food, heath care referrals, and nutrition education for low-income pregnant women, new mothers, and to infants and children up to age five who are nutritionally at risk.” The WIC program serves 53 percent of all infants born in the U.S.
Due to the partial government shutdown at midnight on October 1, WIC’s funding has stopped. According to a USDA memo, available here, states may have funds to last about a week from Oct. 1: “States may have some funds available from infant formula rebates or other sources, including spend forward authority, to continue operations for a week or so, but States would likely be unable to sustain operations for a longer period.” The memo also states that contingency funds “will be available to help States – but even this funding would not fully mitigate a shortfall for the entire month of October.”
Forbes reports that so far, the situation “is most dire in Arkansas and Utah,” with Utah’s WIC program serving 65,000 mothers and children, according to Rev. Douglas Greenaway, who heads the National WIC Association, a nonprofit advocacy group. The Forbes article is available here. Rev. Greenaway highlighted the health consequences when mothers cannot provide food and nutrition for their children, saying, “There’ll be no infant formula and no breastfeeding support. If the baby doesn’t latch, that’s it.”
USDA communications director, Bruce Alexander, said that the department is working with state agencies to continue to provide benefits until funds run out. Alexander said, “The Food and Nutrition Service will be allocating both contingency and carryover funds to state agencies for use in operating their fiscal year 2014 WIC program, in addition to other available funds.” He continued, “Should a lapse extend though late October, federal WIC funding may not be sufficient to cover benefits.”
For more information on the shutdown of the federal government, its causes and effects, please visit the National Agricultural Law Center’s website here.
For information on Nutrition Programs, visit the National Agricultural Law Center’s Reading Room on the subject, here.
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