WIC Shortfall Could Be Problematic For Coloradans

Congress is running out of time to fully fund a program that provides food and health support for breastfeeding moms and kids up to age five. Greta Allen with the Colorado Blueprint to End Hunger says if Congress does not address a one-billion-dollar shortfall for the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women Infants and Children, known as WIC, over two million families will lose critical support, including 25-thousand new or expecting parents and kids in Colorado. Current funding for WIC is set to expire on January 19th unless Congress acts. House Republicans have proposed cutting WIC benefits in a USDA spending bill to try to reign in what they see as runaway government spending. The move comes after Congress, under threat of defaulting on the nation's loans, negotiated new work requirements for SNAP recipients, the program formerly known as food stamps.