The Howell County Health Department WIC (Women, Infants and Children) program in West Plains has announced updated income guidelines, based on 185% of the federal poverty guidelines issued by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The guidelines are issued before June annually.
To be eligible for WIC, families need to have a need for improved nutrition and meet the WIC income guidelines. For a family of one, the annual income guideline is $28,953, the monthly guideline is $2,413 and the weekly is $557.
For a family of four, it is $59,478 annually, $4,957 monthly and $1,144 weekly. To see the chart detailing income guidelines for families of different sizes, visit the Missouri WIC website, health.mo.gov/living/families/wic/families/howdoiapplyforwic.
To apply or for more information, contact the Howell County Health Department, 180 Kentucky St., by calling 417-256-7078. WIC clinics are offered from 9 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. the second Wednesday of each month at the Willow Springs Methodist Church at 311 N. Harris St. in Willow Springs, and during the same hours on the fourth Tuesday of each month at the Mtn. View Christian Church, 1505 Highway 17 in Mtn. View.
WIC is a nutrition education/health promotion program designed to help moms and young children eat well and stay healthy. WIC provides nutrition information, promotes health and provides nutritious foods to supplement your diet. A WIC food package may include milk, cereal, juice, eggs, peanut butter, beans, fresh or frozen vegetables and fruits, and bread, tortillas or brown rice.
Infants receive baby cereal and jars of baby food, as well as formula, if needed. In addition tuna is provided to breastfeeding moms. These foods are chosen for their health value. They include nutrients like protein, calcium, iron, vitamins A and C, folate and zinc.
WIC is for women who are pregnant, breastfeeding or whose pregnancy recently ended, infants younger than 12 months old and children younger than 5 years old.
