Do you think the WIC program is corrupt?
By sedel1027
@sedel1027 (17846)
Cupertino, California
August 22, 2008 9:21pm CST
I started thinking about this a few days ago after a conversation with an online friend.
We have a friend who is pregnant. She doesn't work, her fiance does work (in their state they are actually considered to be legally married due to how long they have been together). They live with her parents to help save money for the baby. She was asking me when we were going to have a baby and I told her not anytime soon because we can't afford it right now and I don't think we qualify for WIC - even with just one of us working. Anyway, She starts telling me how she is getting WIC and what not. I asked her how since they are living with her folks and even though that increases your family size they would count their income, with 4 people + fetus in the home I figured that would be tough to do. She proceeds to tell me that since she isn't working that qualifies her for everything, they didn't count her fiances or parents income, but counted them all as members of the home.
I started thinking about it, when my now ex was in the military we barely qualified for WIC with 3 of in the home and I wasn't working. He was only an E4 and I remember the WI people telling me I couldn't work because we would be disqualified and that if I wanted help with daycare after my son was born, I couldn't work either. When I was pregnant, I moved in with my folks and still got WIC. I *think* they counted my folks as part of the family - since I was living with them - but only counted my ex-husbands salary. At the time I didn't really think about how I was qualifying, but remember being surprised I did qualify. I didn't even think of it as wrong, but looking back I do.
My question is: is this how WIC is really calculated or are the people doing that paper work qualifying people who clearly do not meet the requirements, while at the same time turning away people who did need the service?
Could this be considered a corrupt program?
Side note: in the process of chatting about this, I did check the latest WIC numbers and they have upped the maximum you can make to qualify. Even at the amount though, there are some people that probably need help that will not get the service.
3 people like this
9 responses
@foxyfire33 (10005)
• United States
23 Aug 08
I don't know that I can really answr all you're questions but I can relate an experience. When s/o and I had our first baby I received WIC for formula and they did not count his income either because we were not married. To have a commonlaw marriage paperwork still has to be filed for it to count so your friend probably isn't really considered married as far as WIC is concerned. As for whether they take into consideration her parents or not, it depends on what questions were asked. If her parents financially support her then yes they would be counted, but if she told WIC that her finances and her parents are separate (as if she and fiance are only renting a portion of the home) then WIC would not count their income either.
This like every other government program is corrupt. It's nothing unusual.
1 person likes this
@sedel1027 (17846)
• Cupertino, California
23 Aug 08
See that makes no sense to me. Let's say that she told them about the finances, wouldn't they still be obligated to count the fiances income since he is supporting her?
1 person likes this
@sedel1027 (17846)
• Cupertino, California
26 Aug 08
Really, on some level that is good to know though. I always thought they counted in child support...or maybe I am thinking of child support paid out?
@foxyfire33 (10005)
• United States
23 Aug 08
Technically no. Until they are legally considered to be married, regardless of what way they do that, he legally has no responsibility to support her. So programs generally wouldn't count that income unless there is a court ordered support agrreement in place because "technically" he could walk out tomorrow and have no financial obligation to support her. And if that did happen and he was ordered to pay child support for the child, that income still wouldn't be considered because it counts as a minor child's income not an adult's income even though the mother's name is on the check.
It doesn't make sense but that's the way they do it.
1 person likes this
@cindystoufflet (299)
• United States
23 Aug 08
What i don't understand is why start a family if you can't support them what happened to having a career and buying a home before you bring children into this already hard world. They are not doing the children any good I don't care what kind of help is out there.
There are to many means of birth control not to be able to plan for the future that is so uncertain. Are they even planning for the future. And another thing who pays for this wic and all the other programs. Taxpayers thats who. Are they being so selfish.
@MysticTomatoes (1053)
• United States
23 Mar 09
And you may also be prepared to support a baby, but what happens when that baby is born and needs emergency surgery and then a 4 month hospital stay in the NICU? Even the best prepared parents are rarely if ever prepared for a newborn that needs emergency surgery moments after being born for an unseen complication.
@sanell (2112)
• United States
23 Aug 08
yeah if you are single mom, you qualify, even if you have a significant other who makes money, it does not matter. From what I understand, anyway. Yes they do count your car as an asset, which is so bizarre, they do not count the houses though.
It is so strange, it is like okay this is my only form of transportation and cars depreciate over time. I hear ya on the struggling thing. We have a tough time getting anything because they do not count any after tax pay they only count based on your rate, and even though my hubby makes $25 an hour, we pay about $10 out of that to insurance....and then their are taxes. Anyway it really sucks. I hope you and your friend are able to make things better. Could you imagine if there was no help at all?
1 person likes this
@dementia88 (900)
• United States
23 Aug 08
i dont think its totally curropt. imean i believe there to be some flaws. i was on it when we lived with my mom and they never counted my mom in the number of people in family. i was truthful and told them we lived with her. so maybe it varies by state what they go by. but my husband works and i dont dont we live on our own with 2 kids and we still get wic for our younges who is 2.
@sedel1027 (17846)
• Cupertino, California
23 Aug 08
With a family of four, I don't know how you make ends meet with the WIC requirements. If I got pregnant right now, we would have to make less than 39K a year (before taxes and anything else they may take into consideration). Now that isn't a lot of money.
1 person likes this
@dementia88 (900)
• United States
23 Aug 08
yea us too if we made that much we wouldnt need asst.
1 person likes this
@coolseeds (3919)
• United States
23 Aug 08
Wow you must live in some fancy town. Where I live you would live great on $39,000 and wouldn't need or qualify for assistance.
2 people like this
@momalisa65 (1971)
• United States
24 Aug 08
Are you sure she told them that there are other people living in the house?
Any time I ever signed up for any kind of help like that, they always ask for the income of everyone in the household. (I live in PA)
When my oldest son was 16 and got a job, they counted his income and that disqualified me from even getting reduced school lunch for my younger son.
Maybe WIC is different. Their goal is to make sure that small children are taken care of, and get healthy foods in those young years.
Maybe they figure even though your friend is living with another family, that family probably won't care for buying quality foods for the baby, so they may want to take care of that.
All you get with WIC is Milk, Cheese, Cereal, Juice, and Baby Formula, as far as I remember.
@kenzie45230 (3560)
• United States
23 Aug 08
Sure, the system is flawed. The people who run it are not perfect, nor are those who receive it. So there are mistakes made and fraud takes place. But before there was a WIC program, supposedly, there were more women with problem pregnancies and more small or premature babies born. So, if it costs taxpayers a bit to keep mom and baby healthy it's probably worth it. That costs less than fixing health problems later on.
@whiteheron (4222)
• United States
23 Aug 08
I fully agree with your comment...
The prenatal, infant and childhood is a time when hunger is most likely to be life-threatening.
Children need to eat in order to have good physical development...
WIC is needed and other programs are needed as well because there are still in the United States children who are not getting the food that they need.
Malnourished children can later grow into adults who have mental and physical problems which do require expensive care, training and assistance.
Another people said that it was not the government who should be taking care of the people but that there should be fewer taxes so that people would have more money to donate food to these people... The truth is that is not how it is...
The wealthy people and the corporations do not always donate food to the poor from their wealth. Unfortunately some are self-absorbed and do not care for their brothers and sisters or even realize that they exist as they get so insulated from human needs or suffering as they themselves have enough money to hedge against most of it. And honestly, it is better for those who have need to get the benefits from the government rather then perhaps to be shamed by do-gooders who have a self rightious attitude and a feeling of entitlement to how the receiver of their generousity should look, live or believe.
@sid556 (30959)
• United States
28 Mar 09
I think the concept of the wic program is wonderful in and of itself. How they calculate who qualifies is questionable. I was a single mom and worked full time. I did NOT qualify because I made just over the limit. I had 4 kids! They included my child support which I got very randomly and went months and months without as part of my income. It was difficult at times to put food on the table but we managed. To be honest, I didn't qualify for almost any help. Welfare is about the same. They really need to re-vamp their system.
@mikemcgee (1)
• United States
31 Oct 08
The WIC program is helpful . . . and corrupt. It was started in the 1970s and is basically stuck there in terms if its nutritional model. It gives you cheese, milk cereal, juice, and I think one bag of beans a month. No meat and (a travesty) no vegetables. In some states, you may get farmer's market vouchers for a few bucks. Like all welfare programs in mixed capitalist-socialist economies like ours, it clearly represents a socialistic handout from taxpayers to a select few captalistic industries that probably lobbied for WIC contracts back in the 70s. (Incidentally, a nationalized healthcare program would work the same way in our mixed economy. Government wouldn't socialize medicine; instead it would distribute funds to existing regulated corporations who would then not have to compete for your dollar but would instead have a guaranteed income flow. That's how nationalized health care proponents can take money from the medical industry and offer their plans at the same time.) As a result of this corruption, WIC isn't nutritionally sound, though it manages to deliver the protein (just fatty, unhealthy animal protein, though) that pregnant and nursing women need. Even so, people should take advantage of the program if they can. It's broad enough to reach the lower middle class, and for those who pay taxes they shouldn't pay anyway, think of it as a tax refund.
@MysticTomatoes (1053)
• United States
23 Mar 09
She could have lied and said that she works part time or doesn't work at all and is on unemployement/welfare. Many women on WIC have to lie to be able to get formula for their babies. WIC isn't like food stamps. You can't go into the store and buy $500 worth of junk food and t-bone steaks. You have a coupon with a set list of items on it. My sister in law was on WIC at one time and I think she got 15 cans of formula and milk and maybe a carton of eggs or a box baby cereal per month. She didn't get a lot. Formula here is about $25 a can and those "free" 15 cans she got a month was a life saver more often than not.
WIC is corrupted when people lie and cheat to get the benefits. It takes away from those who truly need it.
