Women, Infants and Children program now has enough money to last through October

Washington’s Women, Infants and Children (WIC) Nutrition program just got a reprieve, according to the Washington Department of Health.

Last week, state officials warned that funding for the WIC program — which provides formula, breastfeeding support, and healthy food to low-income families — was about to run out due to the federal government shutdown.

Now, the Washington State Department of Health said it has secured funding from the U.S. Department of Agriculture to keep food benefits going through October.

“Amid ongoing uncertainty following the federal government shutdown, DOH remains committed to supporting the people of Washington who rely on WIC to meet their nutritional needs and our employees,” DOH said in a news release Thursday.

The WIC program helps low-income mothers in the state feed their newborns, get infant formula, and access breastfeeding support.

More than 212,000 women and children rely on WIC annually. According to The Washington State Standard, WIC helps nearly one-third of all newborn babies in Washington and serves nearly 7 million Americans nationwide.

Nutritional assistance amid the government shutdown

WIC does not qualify as an entitlement program, like food stamps via the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), meaning the program can be susceptible to funding freezes when a government shutdown is in place.

The Department of Agriculture’s contingency plan said WIC has the ability to reallocate unused grant award funds from the previous budget year. The National WIC Association, an advocacy group, said it anticipates that the program has enough funding on hand to remain open just for the short term — likely one week to two weeks.

SNAP will continue at least for the month of October.

What closes during a shutdown?

All administrations get some leeway to choose which services to freeze or maintain in a shutdown.

The first Trump administration worked to blunt the impact of what became the country’s longest partial shutdown in 2018 and 2019. But on Tuesday, Trump threatened the possibility of increasing the pain that comes with a shutdown.

“We can do things during the shutdown that are irreversible, that are bad for them and irreversible by them,” Trump said of Democrats. “Like cutting vast numbers of people out, cutting things that they like, cutting programs that they like.”

Each federal agency develops its own shutdown plan. The plans outline which workers would stay on the job during a shutdown and which would be furloughed.

In a provocative move, Trump’s budget office threatened the mass firing of federal workers in a shutdown. An office memo said those programs that didn’t get funding through Trump’s bill this summer would bear the brunt of a shutdown.

Agencies should consider issuing reduction-in-force notices for those programs whose funding expires, that don’t have alternative funding sources and are “not consistent with the President’s priorities,” the memo said.

That would be a much more aggressive step than in previous shutdowns, when furloughed federal workers returned to their jobs once the shutdown was over. A reduction in force would not only lay off employees but eliminate their positions, which would trigger another massive upheaval in a federal workforce that’s already faced major rounds of cuts due to efforts from the Department of Government Efficiency and elsewhere in Trump’s Republican administration.

What government work continues during a shutdown?

A great deal, actually.

FBI investigators, CIA officers, air traffic controllers, and agents operating airport checkpoints keep working. So do members of the armed forces.

Those programs that rely on mandatory spending generally continue during a shutdown. Social Security payments still go out. Those relying on Medicare coverage can still see their doctors, and healthcare providers can be reimbursed.

Veteran health care continues during a shutdown. Veterans Affairs medical centers and outpatient clinics will be open, and VA benefits will be processed and delivered. Burials will continue at VA national cemeteries.

Contributing: The Associated Press