Women, Infants and Children Program can help provide nutritious food during holiday season

EL DORADO COUNTY, Calif. - The holiday season can be stressful for families trying to balance their budget and provide nutritious food, but the 50-year-old Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) Program can help.

“WIC offers families the resources to meet important nutritional needs while being mindful of a limited budget,” said Juliet Barwis, supervisor of El Dorado County WIC. “The program provides nutrition education, breastfeeding support, benefits for nutritious foods, and referrals to health care providers and community services like Community Based Nursing visits, car seat education, and more.”

WIC is a federally funded nutrition program administered through the California Department of Public Health and implemented locally through the El Dorado County Health and Human Services Agency, Public Health Division. The program serves those who are pregnant or have recently been pregnant,

infants, and children up to their fifth birthday.

“This year, the WIC program is celebrating 50 years of growing healthy families,” said Barwis. “The program, which started in 1974, has continued to evolve over the years to meet the needs of participating families. An important recent WIC update is the increase in cash benefits to purchase fruits and vegetables. Monthly dollar amounts are now $26 for each child ages one- to five- years old, $47 for those who are pregnant or postpartum, $52 for those fully or partially breastfeeding, and $78 for those breastfeeding more than one infant.”

Barwis noted that WIC staff have made appointments more convenient than ever, “Our WIC staff can meet with families in the Placerville and South Lake Tahoe Health and Human Services Agency office locations or over the phone. Families can receive resources and information by mail or text message. Staff are also available every month at the Georgetown Library and the White Rock Village Apartments in El Dorado Hills.”

For more information, visit HERE.

The El Dorado County WIC program also serves Alpine County. WIC staff are available to meet with families at the Alpine County Health and Human Services building in Markleeville every other month.