Committee Democrats Strongly Urge House Leadership to Fully Fund WIC

Letter

Dear Speaker Johnson, Leader Jeffries, Chair Granger, and Ranking Member DeLauro:

As members of the House Committee on Education and the Workforce, we write to underscore the need for fully funding the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC). For more than 25 years, there has been a bipartisan commitment to provide sufficient WIC funding to serve all eligible participants. WIC currently serves over half of all infants born in the country and continues to be a lifesaving nutrition intervention program that minimizes avoidable health and developmental issues for low-income, nutritionally at-risk women, infants, and children.

Last year, the Office of Management and Budget (OMB) outlined the need for an additional $1.4 billion in Fiscal Year (FY) 2024 funding for WIC2 due to a significant increase in participation. If Congress fails to include additional WIC funding, as many as two million young children and pregnant and postpartum adults could lose access to WIC benefits entirely. Any funding shortfall would force eligible new parents and children (predominantly preschoolers, toddlers, and postpartum adults) onto waiting lists and deny them vital nutrition benefits and WIC services that are critical for healthy development. Even more concerning, many of the parents and children who would be turned away from the program come from families of color that are already at an increased risk of maternal and infant mortality compared to white families.

WIC safeguards the health of low-income women, infants, and children up to age 5 who are at nutritional risk by providing nutritious foods to supplement diets, information on healthy eating, and referrals to health care. The cost-effectiveness of WIC, coupled with its quality-of-life improvements for participants, makes it one of the country’s most successful federal nutrition programs. For instance, a study of California’s prenatal participation in WIC demonstrates that the program saves $2.48 in health care costs on average for every dollar of funding. Furthermore, every dollar spent on prenatal WIC participation is estimated to save Medicaid between $1.77 and $3.13 in health care costs during the first 60 days after delivery.

To prevent any disruption to a program that is crucial to supporting new parents and young children, it is vital that WIC is fully funded and continues to align with projected participation and food costs. Hundreds of public health and faith-based organizations and advocacy groups, including the American Academy of Pediatrics, Save the Children, Children’s Defense Fund, and the National Council of Churches, have urged Congress to act given the ramifications of underfunding the program.

We urge you to ensure that WIC funding is adequate to meet the need.

Sincerely,

Source