The federal Women, Infants and Children program is meant to ensure a healthy diet for low-income women and children. So it’s never made much sense that the food vouchers can’t be used to buy fresh fruits and vegetables, which nutritionists tout as pillars of a healthy diet.
It’s good news, then, that the state-administered WIC program is changing this rule to allow mothers to purchase fresh fruits and vegetables with the money, beginning in late 2009. It’s also good that the program will provide more incentives for mothers to breast-feed babies, a practice with proven health benefits for children.
19 Comments
Wow, someone got it right for a change. Congrats!!!
The next thing they need to do is not allow people to buy cigarettes with the cash portion of their vision cards.
If you want women to breast feed then dont give then vouchers for formula
The kicker is that it will take them until late 2009 to make this change.
Huh?
In private business, a change like this would be implemented in 90 days, at the outside. Why does a government entity require 18 months to make this change?
“In private business, a change like this would be implemented in 90 days, at the outside. Why does a government entity require 18 months to make this change?”
WS- The Gubment has to set up a program to keep track of the serial numbers of the fruits and veggies affected in this program. In triplicate, no less!!
And then DHS has to buy off on it.
They should implement the program immediately while making the State workers put in those extra hours to see that the program is successful until the legislation is effective.
I’m sure grocery merchants would help out as well, doing some extra paperwork to reimbursed by the state.
NANNY GOVERNMENT!
Eat your fruits and veggies boys and girls. And if your food stamps won’t let you get fruits and veggies for free, well just live on Twinkies and Donuts instead. (Heaven forbid you work to earn your own money and use your own money to buy fruits and veggies!)
Nanny Gov’t wants you poor folk to be big, fat, and dependent on Gov’t forever, but not to live too long, cause you be too expensive when you get old.
Damn, Max, I never cease to be amazed at your “compassionate conservatism.”
It is truly inspiring.
“If you want women to breast feed then dont give then vouchers for formula”
Valid point – BUT: often a mother needs to supplement if her production is insufficient.
How Condescending can Big Nanny Government be?
Telling all da poor what to eat, and how to breast feed!
Da*n Publik Edukation!
Hey Regular, I get ya now.
This program isn’t going far enough. The Gov’t should be doing the shopping for these poor people, and dropping da food off at their homes. In fact, they need to put da food away in da fridge, give em instruksions on how to cook it and eat it too.
Then come back and inspect things to make sure they get the hands on training for cookin and breast feedin.
Agreed, why in the hell is it going to take 18 months to implement? Can’t they just start next week?
And I agree with Mary also, many times you see them buying so much junk that also qualifies as ‘food’ although I know you can’t micro manage that either.
Max, a scenario for you. A 30’s something couple in a supposedly stable relationship makes the decision to have a baby. Both are employed and the mother is also in nursing school for her RN. Two weeks after the baby is born the father bails…just disappears. Would you suggest that the mother not be worthy of, nor need assistance for a one year maximum to bond with her baby, finish her degree, and get back on her feet after an unforeseeable event? No family members were in a position to help.
What should a civil society do? Force her to give up a baby that she wanted and waited to have so that she could work and support herself? Punish her for being with what turned out to be a jerk? Force her and the baby to stand on street corners with a hand out? Seriously, what do we, as a society, expect should happen to this woman and child? I look forward to your response.
Max,
heh, no.
Unfortunately, there are a lot of pregnanet women, unmarried, married and without jobs. Shouldn’t make the future child suffer and those women who have given birth, give them a helping hand.
Child care is expensive now, about 150/week and that’s a low average. So, that’s $600.00/month.
With most women who have young children, getting a low paying job just isn’t feasible as they can’t afford the child care, the car, the gas and all that other stuff that comes with a job.
No, I don’t have a problem helping out women with a legitimate problem.
the Alternate to not helping out women is for them to get abortions. At the same time make crap food, candy, chips etc not part of vision card program.
I can tell you that when this woman applied for welfare although they were generous with the food vouchers ($250 or $275) as I recall, her monthly cash stipend was only $275. Kinda hard to find a place to live, pay bills and afford child care on that. Even with the stipend she was unable to actually support herself.
Wichi,
If the woman should at some time receive child support (SRS will find the father, but it takes some time, if it happens at all), then her child support is deducted from the cash.
Max,
And if your food stamps won’t let you get fruits and veggies for free, well just live on Twinkies and Donuts instead.
You’re talking apples and oranges. WIC and “food stamps” are not the same program. With WIC, you get vouchers for milk, beans, cheese, juice, and formula (if there’s a baby under 1-year-old), and baby cereal. I can’t remember if baby food in jars is on that. You can’t get chips and dip or ice cream or tomatoes or… It’s very limited, but it does help mothers-to-be and mothers of small children get some of the foods that is needed. What’s the problem with adding fruits and veggies? Are you jealous?
I hope that ….
” It’s also good that the program will provide more incentives for mothers to breast-feed babies, a practice with proven health benefits for children.”
doesn’t translate to….
“If you want women to breast feed then dont give then vouchers for formula.”
We need to be careful with a too tight embrace with breast feeding.
Our doctor insisted that my son breast feed. He continued to insist that after 3 weeks and the boy had lost a pound and a half.
We switched doctors and found that his mother was generating almost no milk. The new doctor said get this baby on formula immediately. He may have saved my son’s life.
“
Max,
It was a few years ago, but I haven’t seen any evidence that things have changed.
We had a neighbor who lived a few houses down from us in a roach-infested tumbledown fourplex. She was barely 15yrs old, the mother of 18mo old twin boys fathered by her stepfather. Since her mother was financially dependent on him, the girl was the one kicked out. Yes, she was on welfare, with a burnt out caseworker who did as little work as possible. She didn’t know anything about childcare, didn’t know how to cook anything but hamburgers and nothing at all about managing the little money she got. At 18 months, her children weren’t walking, talking or even crying. they sat in a crib all day and hardly moved. They hadn’t been to a doctor since they were born because the girl had no transportation.
Those kids were guaranteed from birth to be either in a state institution or prison, either of which your tax dollars would pay for. Don’t you think it would have been cheaper to have spent the money for education, parenting classes and reasonable food before it reached that state?
And before you make your usual snide comment, no, nobody ever offered her the option of adoption.
From waht you describe, Jed..the government probably could have made little difference in her life or the lives of her kids. You can’t cure stupity, ignorance, and detachment with government giveaway programs…you only make people more dependant than they already are.
Just one question, why didn’t YOU and your wife take her under your wing and TEACH her how to parent, cook, etc? Why didn’t YOU drive her to the doctor?
That’s the problem today, expecting the government to be the answer to any and all social problems…a noble idea if it would work…but in the real world the government makes is a poor parent.
Maybe if more of us would get involved,the outcome for children in these circumstances would be better. Obviously she couldn’t figure things out for herself, it takes a lot more personal attention from caring people to turn things around for kids like her…the government and the welfare system aren’t going to do it, it’s already too overloaded with people in situations like this.