WIC supplemental nutrition program for infants, pregnant women, operating in New York but could be endangered amid lengthy shutdown
Grocery bags with food from the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children, WIC, sit in a shopping cart before being loaded into a vehicle earlier this week. Credit: AP/Rogelio V. Solis
New York pregnant women, mothers and young children enrolled in a federal program that provides food, infant formula and other benefits can continue to receive that assistance for now, but that funding could soon be depleted amid a lengthy government shutdown, experts warn.
The Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children, often referred to as WIC, currently "remains open and ready to serve families" in New York, according to the state Department of Health, which manages the program in New York.
"As the federal landscape continues to change rapidly, we are closely monitoring any developments and will keep New Yorkers informed of any changes that would affect their benefits," the department said in a Monday email to Newsday.
But the National WIC Association, a nonprofit that is a proponent of the program, is raising the alarm that a protracted government shutdown could jeopardize the health of millions of mothers and children who rely on WIC across the country. That's because WIC is dependent on yearly funding doled out at the start of the government's fiscal year, Oct. 1, which now comes as the spending impasse between Republicans and Democrats draws on.
A reserve of $150 million is keeping the program afloat now but at least one state, Washington, has said that it will not be able to keep WIC going for long without a funding infusion.
The association "anticipates that WIC has enough funding on hand to remain open for the short term — likely one to two weeks," Georgia Machell, president and CEO of the organization, said in a statement on its website. "The timing of this shutdown at the start of the new fiscal year puts WIC at risk of rapidly running out of funds."
WIC, which has received bipartisan support but has been targeted for cuts from some conservatives in Congress, helps pregnant women, new mothers and children up to age 5 buy food such as vegetables and baby food, state officials say. It can also provide nutrition workshops and lactation support.
Research has shown the program has been linked to reduced infant deaths and other benefits but reaches only about half of those who are eligible.
Experts say the $8 billion program could be in the shutdown’s cross hairs as Democrats push to restore health care subsidies. House Republicans had sought to partially fund WIC.
During the 2024 fiscal year, the program helped about 440,000 people in New York, with the state receiving about $500 million in federal funding, according to the state comptroller’s office.
About 15,800 people in Nassau took part in the program this year as of July, while roughly 23,550 did the same in Suffolk, the state Health Department said.
Several local program providers said this week that WIC services have not been impacted by the shutdown so far, though they remain vigilant.
Stony Brook WIC, which provides benefits to more than 6,000 women and children, said it is not currently planning on cutting back services.
"Stony Brook WIC is accepting new appointments and all WIC services, including nutrition education and breastfeeding support are available," Stony Brook Medicine officials said in an e-mailed statement to Newsday on Tuesday.
Suffolk County did not provide comment. Nassau cited the state Health Department’s comments on its website, saying the program was continuing but could be impacted by the shutdown.
Catholic Charities of Long Island, which operates WIC sites in Freeport, Amityville, as well as at Mercy Hospital in Rockville Centre and St. Hugh of Lincoln in Huntington Station, said they are "operating all sites as usual." It serves about 3,300 people per month.
Still, staff there say that a lasting shutdown could lead to a loss of services.
Amy Agiato, director of Nutrition and Maternity Services at Catholic Charities of Long Island, said in a Tuesday statement: "If the shutdown lasts more than a few weeks, the funding for WIC benefits will run out, leaving our neighbors without needed nutrition for their growing infants and toddlers."
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said on X that "President Trump and the White House have identified a creative solution to transfer resources from Section 232 tariff revenue to this critical program," referring to WIC funding. The statement gave no details as how that transfer would work or its legality.
With AP
Tiffany Cusaac-Smith is a general assignment reporter for Newsday. She previously worked at USA TODAY and is an alum of Howard University.
