As part of the WIC innovation and modernization efforts to be funded under ARPA, FNS is supporting planning and implementation projects focused on enhancements that improve the WIC participant experience, as evidenced by enhancing the WIC shopping experience, increasing participant enrollment, reducing unnecessary administrative burden for both participants and administrators, including through data matching to streamline enrollment, and retaining eligible participants while improving equity
USDA proposes to remove barriers to online ordering and internet-based transactions in WIC through this rulemaking.
In FY 2022, FNS awarded $23,100,000.00 in grants to 66 WIC state agencies to support planning and implementation of projects to improve the WIC participant experience. State agencies each received $350,000.00 in funding to work on multiple types of projects.
This rulemaking proposes to revise regulations governing the WIC food packages to align them with the current Dietary Guidelines for Americans and reflect recommendations made by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine in its 2017 report, “Review of WIC Food Packages: Improving Balance and Choice. while promoting nutrition security and taking into account program administration considerations.
This proposed rule would revise regulations governing the WIC program, incorporating the provisions set forth in the Healthy, Hunger- Free Kids Act of 2010 (HHFKA) related to Electronic Benefit Transfer (EBT) for the WIC Program.
This proposed rule would revise regulations governing the WIC food packages to align the WIC food packages with the 2005 Dietary Guidelines for Americans and current infant feeding practice guidelines of the American Academy of Pediatrics, better promote and support the establishment of successful long-term breastfeeding, provide WIC participants with a wider variety of food, provide WIC state agencies with greater flexibility in prescribing food packages to accommodate participants with cultural food preferences, and serve participants with certain qualifying conditions under one food package to facilitate efficient management of medically fragile participants.
This rule proposes to amend regulations for the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children by adding three requirements mandated by the Child Nutrition and WIC Reauthorization Act of 2004 concerning retail vendors authorized by WIC state agencies to provide supplemental food to WIC participants in exchange for WIC food instruments.
This proposed rule would amend the regulations governing the WIC program to clarify issues that have arisen subsequent to the publication of the WIC Food Delivery Systems Final Rule on Dec. 29, 2000, and to strengthen further the requirements for state vendor management and infant formula cost-containment systems.
The Department is soliciting public comments on redesigning the food packages offered through the WIC program to determine if the WIC food packages should be revised to better improve the nutritional intake, health and development of participants; and, if so, what specific changes should be made to the food packages.
This rulemaking would streamline the federal requirements for financial and participation reporting by state agencies. In addition, it would clarify the rules on confidentiality of WIC information in order to strengthen coordination with organizations and private physicians, and to provide guidance to state agencies on responding to subpoenas and other court-ordered requests for confidential information.