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July 2015 Moms
wheresilenceismusic
member
WIC (Women, Infants, and Children) PSA
wheresilenceismusic
member
Good afternoon, Mamas!
I never thought that I would be eligible for WIC benefits: my husband serves the military, and although our finances are tight, we still manage to save a little each month. Well, I have great news to share. After reading that over half of American women and children qualify for WIC benefits (supplemental food), I met with our local office today to discover that my family qualifies, too.
Here are the income guidelines to qualify:
-- If you are a family of 2, you can make $29,101 each year or less, or $2,426 each month.
-- If you are a family of 3, you can make $36,612 each year or less, or $3,051 each month.
-- If you are a family of 4, you can make $44,123 each year or less, or $3,677 each month.
Military families like ours shouldn't count the BAH as part of their yearly or monthly income.
To qualify, you also need to be:
-- pregnant
-- postpartum (up to six months after your LO is born)
-- breastfeeding (up to your LO's fifth birthday)
The benefits for our family of 3 (me + DH + LO) are modest. We received vouchers for an incredible amount of milk and cheese, for two boxes of cereal, four cans of beans, two containers of juice, bread, eggs, peanut butter, and $10 worth of fresh fruits and vegetables, all to last us the month. Still -- every little bit helps!
A nurse took my weight and pricked my finger to check for anaemia. (I take an iron supplement as well as my prenatal, so I was not anaemic.) I met with a nutritionist for a diet consultation. I also met with a lactation specialist who will call me once a week, every week, postpartum to help troubleshoot in case anything goes wrong.
I had a great morning today at the WIC office. I am so very grateful that this program exists. If the program saves us $100/month, then that is $100/month more that we can budget towards diapers or car repairs. And since half of American families qualify for the program, I know that some of you Mamas here on the Bump can benefit from this information and from my story.
If you have a hardworking family like mine that can benefit from an extra boost... call your local WIC office! It's another friendly resource that sets the foundation for the long-term health of your kids.
Re: WIC (Women, Infants, and Children) PSA
Married 03/18/10
DS #2 Born 05/19/11
DS #3 Due 07/26/15
Looks like it is a Federal program so it shouldn't vary by state.
Is the father/husband/signicant other not count towards the income?
https://health.hawaii.gov/wic/program_details/#Eligibility
And you include the income of everyone living in the house regardless of relation.
Married 03/18/10
DS #2 Born 05/19/11
DS #3 Due 07/26/15
Reference:
https://www.fns.usda.gov/wic/frequently-asked-questions-about-wic
Just because I know when we looked into it (we make $200 too much per month for a family of 5, because they go by gross pay) I thought it was ridiculous because in, say, Iowa, it would be easy for a family of 5 to make under $51,005 annually (and be able to live just fine), but here in So. Cal. it would be really difficult to raise a family of 5 on that.
J -- 9/04
L -- 11/10
E -- 7/15
Married 03/18/10
DS #2 Born 05/19/11
DS #3 Due 07/26/15
J -- 9/04
L -- 11/10
E -- 7/15
J -- 9/04
L -- 11/10
E -- 7/15