The WIC (Women, Infants and Children) special supplemental nutritional program provides supplemental food for children when they need food high in nutrition for critical growth. The program also provides supplemental nutritional aid for women so that the baby can grow into a strong and healthy adult. The program encourages breastfeeding and provides necessary support for it. In addition to these benefits, the Arkansas WIC program also helps mothers learn about important nutrients and dietary habits so that they can maintain healthy diet for infant and children.

The program provides benefits to all the residents of Arkansas as long as they qualify for the program. Pregnant women, pregnant and postpartum women can qualify to receive benefits through this program as long as they meet income and resources related eligibility requirements. WIC benefits are also available for infants and children under the age of five. For children and infants to qualify for the program, their household income and resources will have to be within the income and resources limits set for Arkansas WIC program. Infants and children receiving ARKids, TEA, SNAP, or Medicaid benefits can also qualify for Arkansas WIC program.

The WIC program in Arkansas provides food that is rich in dietary value, ensuring that women, infants, and children can grow strong. The food supply program includes vegetables as well as fruits, whole grains, and a soy based beverage. The beverage serves as an alternative to milk. The other foods provided through the program are also high in nutrition and they include fresh as well as frozen foods.

In addition to nutritional food supplies, WIC also provides nutritional education to the pregnant women and mothers to ensure that they can maintain the right amount of nutritional value for their own and children's diet. The major purpose of WIC nutritional education is to improve overall health standards among women, infants, and children by making participants understand the important link between proper nutrition and good health. Everyone who has been enrolled in the WIC program automatically receives nutritional education.

WIC program is available through Local Health Units (LHC) in state of Arkansas. These units (including satellite clinics and WIC-only clinics) are spread throughout the state and can be found in every county in the state.

For further information about the program, you can call at 501-661-2473 any time.

Eligibility Requirements

Indiana residents must meet SNAP eligibility guidelines otherwise Family and Social Services Administration may decline their application request.

• Pregnant women
• Breastfeeding women
• Postpartum women
• Infants
• Children up to age five

For anyone to be eligible for the WIC program:

• Has to be a resident of state of Arkansas
• Has to be determined as 'nutritional risk'
• Must have income below income 185% of the federal poverty income level

Some individuals will automatically qualify for the WIC program. These include:

• Enrolled in the Medicaid program
• Enrolled in the Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) program
• Enrolled in some other selected state-administrative programs

What is nutritional risk?

The WIC program requires applicants to be determined as a nutritional risk by a qualified health professional. A qualified health professional can be a registered dietitian, physician, or a nurse. Anything that falls in the following categories counts as nutritional risk for WIC program:

• Risk of anemia
• Underweight
• Overweight
• Pregnancy complication
• Failure to maintain diet according to dietary guidelines

Income Eligibility

Applicants for Arkansas WIC will also have to meet income guidelines set for the program in order to receive benefits. The program requires applicants to have household income below 185% of the federal poverty line (FPL). Below is a table of gross annual household income according to the number of people living in the household to help you find out whether you meet income eligibility criteria or not.

Household Size	Annual Income Limit
1	$20,665
2	$27,991
3	$35,317
4	$42,643
5	$49,969
6	$57,295
7	$64,621
8	$71,947

It's easy to further explore whether you are eligible for WIC program or not. You can use the USDA's online screening tool to check your eligibility online. .

WIC Application Instructions

It's easy to apply for Arkansas WIC program. WIC program is available at all the Local Health Units across the State of Arkansas. The program is also available at satellite clinics, and WIC-only clinics.

In order to apply for WIC program in Arkansas, applicants will have to:

• Call the office for an appointment. You can call at 1-800-235-0002 (Toll-Free number for Arkansas WIC), and schedule an appointment.
  
• Once you have an appointment scheduled, collect everything that you need at the interview meeting.
  
• At the interview/meeting with local health office representative, you will have to prove your eligibility specific to your case. Ask the office representative (case manager) what you need to bring to the interview in order to prove your eligibility for the program. Depending on your case, you may have to bring case-specific documents. Generally, they are documents related to income, birth certificates, immunization card, social security card, and residency verification.