The WIC Program: Background, Trends, and Economic Issues, 2009 Edition
by
Victor Oliveira and
Elizabeth Frazao
Economic Research Report No. (ERR-73) 90 pp, April 2009
cover image for err73
The mission of the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) is to safeguard the health of low-income women, infants, and children through age 4 who are at nutritional risk. WIC provides nutritious foods to supplement diets, nutrition education, and referrals to health care and other social services. Administered by USDA’s Food and Nutrition Service (FNS), almost half of all infants and about a quarter of all children ages 1-4 in the United States participate in the program. WIC is USDA’s third-largest food and nutrition assistance program, accounting for 10 percent of total Federal spending on food and nutrition assistance. This report describes the WIC program—how it works, its history, program trends, and the characteristics of the population it serves. It also examines current issues facing WIC, focusing mainly on those with important economic implications.
Keywords: Food and Nutrition Assistance Programs, Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children, WIC, administrative-based issues, outcome-based issues
In this publication...
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Report summary, Pdf file 142 kb | HTML
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Abstract, Contents, and Summary, Pdf file 188 kb
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Introduction, Pdf file 109 kb
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Overview of the WIC Program, Pdf file 147 kb
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Legislative and Regulatory History of the WIC Program, Pdf file 77 kb
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Program Trends, Pdf file 414 kb
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Characteristics of WIC Participants, Pdf file 248 kb
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Administrative-Based Issues in WIC, Pdf file 647 kb
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Outcome-Based Issues in WIC, Pdf file 283 kb
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Future Research Directions, Pdf file 47 kb
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References, Pdf file 60 kb
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Appendix: Methodology for Estimating WIC Participants as a Percent of U.S. Population Subgroups, Pdf file 49 kb
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Entire report, Pdf file 1,804 kb
Charts and graphs (in .png format) from this report are available in the .zip file listed below. The .zip file also contains a document (readme.txt) that lists the name and title of each chart or graph file.
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