Participants in the US Department of Agriculture’s Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children may soon see a temporary increase to their benefits for the purchase of fruits and vegetables.
The cash-value voucher allows participants to purchase fruits and vegetables as part of their WIC food package. Under normal circumstances, the monthly cash-value voucher is $9 per child and $11 for pregnant, postpartum and breastfeeding women. The $490 million provided by the American Rescue Plan allows state agencies to temporarily provide up to $35 per child and adult, per month. These additional funds will increase the purchasing power of WIC participants so they can buy and consume more healthy fruits and vegetables.
USDA’s Food and Nutrition Service notified WIC state agencies of this option March 24, 2021. South Dakota’s WIC program opted in April 20 and will distribute the increased amounts in June, July, August and September. Participating state agencies have until September 30, 2021, to give out the funds.
With the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021, USDA offered states, tribal nations and territories the option of boosting the cash-value voucher benefit by more than three times the current amount for up to four months to provide additional relief. WIC has a long-standing history of improving the overall health and nutrition of its participants. The program provides women, infants, and children up to age of 5, who are at nutritional risk, with healthy foods to supplement their diets as well as health care referrals and nutrition education. For more information on WIC, visit: www.fns.usda.gov/wic.
Recently, USDA has maximized economic relief for struggling families by taking administrative action on SNAP emergency allotments by targeting an additional $1 billion per month to roughly 25 million people. Last week, USDA issued flexibilities that will allow schools and childcare institutions to serve healthy meals for free to all kids in the upcoming 2021-2022 school year. On Monday, USDA expanded the Pandemic-EBT program to reach more than 30 million children over the summer months.
More information on USDA’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic can be found at www.fns.usda.gov/coronavirus.
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