The biennial WIC Participant and Program Characteristics Report describes a census of all participants in WIC. The most recent report (PC 2016) reflects state management information systems data from April 2016, and this Food Package Report is a supplemental analysis of that data. While PC 2016 summarizes participant characteristics, this report summarizes the food packages, or prescriptions, that state agencies issued to these participants.
WIC Participant and Program Characteristics 2016 (PC 2016) summarizes the demographic characteristics of participants in the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) nationwide in April 2016. It includes information on participant income and nutrition risk characteristics, estimates breastfeeding initiation rates for WIC infants, and describes WIC members of migrant farm-worker families. PC 2016 is the most recent in a series of reports generated from WIC state management information system data biennially since 1992.
The purpose of this study is to evaluate the effectiveness of state agencies current peer group systems, and to provide guidance to state agencies on how to evaluate and update their systems. Specifically, it uses empirical analysis to identify one or more effective models for establishing vendor peer groups that could apply to most state agencies.
WIC Participant and Program Characteristics 2014 (PC 2014) summarizes the demographic characteristics of participants in the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) nationwide in April 2014. It includes information on participant income and nutrition risk characteristics, estimates breastfeeding initiation rates for WIC infants, and describes WIC members of migrant farm-worker families. PC 2014 is the most recent in a series of reports generated from WIC State management information system data biennially since 1992.
This study is part of a larger FNS effort to ensure WIC program integrity and to comply with the Improper Payments Information Act of 2002 which requires FNS to estimate improper payments in its programs.
This report provides improper payment estimates for fiscal year 2011 using a methodology for “aging” the 2005 bookend study. The methodology yields nationally representative estimates of the number of vendors that over- and undercharged and the amount of over- and undercharges across all WIC vendors.
This report provides improper payment estimates for FY 2010 using a methodology for “aging” the 2005 bookend study. The methodology yields nationally representative estimates of the number of vendors that over- and undercharged and the amount of over- and undercharges across all WIC vendors.
This report provides improper payments estimates for FY 2009 using a methodology for “aging” the 2005 bookend study. This updates previous reports providing estimates from 2005 to 2008.
About every 7 years, FNS performs a nationally representative study to examine the extent of error and abuse among food vendors authorized to accept WIC vouchers. The last bookend study was the 2005 WIC Vendor Management Study, which used fiscal year 2005 expenditure data to derive an estimate for 2004. Between bookend studies, there is a need to derive annual estimates of the level of improper payments for compliance with the Improper Payments Information Act of 2002. The purpose of the subsequent annual studies was to provide annual updates to the bookend studies using the developed aging methodology.
This report, the first of three, addresses the first objective of the study, which is to explore the characteristics and experiences of WIC participants.