Regional News

This holiday season, give your family the gift of healthy food

By NCBI
Nov 16, 2011

With Thanksgiving just days away, families with young children struggling with job loss and pay cuts are finding it tougher to keep healthy food on the table. There's help at more than 220 neighborhood clinics statewide through WIC - The Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children.

With just a phone call, parents get an appointment in one to two weeks, and will receive WIC checks for each qualifying family member at their first appointment. Who qualifies and what do they get? Depending on their income, women who are pregnant, breastfeeding or just had a baby, and children under age five receive monthly WIC checks for $50 worth of healthy food. A pregnant woman with a three-year-old, for example, would get about $100 in checks for WIC foods. They can use them in their own community grocery stores. They also get support and information about how to stay healthy.

Household income guidelines range from $2,268 for a family of two to $5,213 for a family of seven. Call 1-800-322-2588 for details. To find a WIC clinic and other helpful food and health resources families can go to parenthelp123.org. WIC is funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture.


Top of page
-------------------
© 2024 Okanogan Country Radio. All rights reserved.