The Mississippi WIC program is a state and US central government sponsored program that provides supplemental foods, health care referrals, and nutrition education to low-income pregnant, breastfeeding, and postpartum women. And also to infants and children who are below six years of age and are medically established to be nutritionally at risk.

Since its inception the program has helped to promote proper nutrition among infants, children and women undergoing pregnancy, thus greatly reducing the infant mortality rate and promoting good health among infants and children in the state of Mississippi.

In order to qualify for the program applicants must meet a specified set of eligibility requirements which are categorical, income and residential in nature. Another important eligibility requirement is that infants and children must be medically examined and proven to be at nutritional risk by a healthcare professional. The Mississippi WIC program provides medical examination services to its applicants at no cost in their nearest WIC clinics.

You can apply for the program by filling and submitting an application form to your local Mississippi WIC office. You will then schedule an appointment with a program representative who will interview you to determine your eligibility. Upon successful completion of the process you will start enjoying the benefits of the program which include:

• Access to WIC Free nutritional food packages (A list of the foods offered by the Mississippi WIC program can be found on this link: www.msdh.state.ms.us/msdhsite/)
• Free breast feeding information and support
• Free immunizations and medical screening for infants and children
• Free healthcare referral

Eligibility Requirements

In order to qualify for the Mississippi WIC program, applicants must meet a specified set of eligibility requirements. These requirements are mainly categorical, residential, income and medical in nature and are highlighted in the subsequent paragraphs.

Mississippi Categorical WIC Eligibility Requirements:

Women

• Pregnant women who are currently undergoing pregnancy or are within 6 week of the birth of an infant or at the end of the pregnancy
• Postpartum women
• Breastfeeding women up to the infants first birthday

Infants

• Are eligible up to their first birthday

Children

• Are eligible up to their fifth birthdays

Residential Eligibility Requirements

• Applicants to the Mississippi WIC programs are required to be residents of the state of Mississippi
• Applicants are required to apply to a local Mississippi clinic that serves their local area
• Applicants are supposed to have lived in the state of Mississippi for a period of at least five years

Mississippi WIC Income Eligibility Requirements

In order to be eligible for the Mississippi WIC program, you must meet a specified set of income eligibility requirements. A detailed explanation of these eligibility requirements is found on this link: https://msdh.ms.gov/page/41,1066,128.html.

Applicants who are currently receiving benefits such as MEDICAID , TANF, and other general assistance program are considered automatically income eligible and thus do not need to undergo the income tests.

Medical Examination Eligibility Requirement

Individuals applying for the Mississippi WIC program must be medically examined by a healthcare professional and established to be nutritionally at risk.

You can asses you eligibility to the Mississippi WIC program using the online pre-screening tool available on the following link: www.wic.fns.usda.gov/wps/pages/start.jsf.

WIC Application Instructions

In order to apply for the Mississippi WIC program you need to find and contact your nearest county health department available on this link.

You will be able to schedule an appointment with a program representative who will interview you by verifying you documents and asking you specific questions aimed at establishing your eligibility to the program. Before going to the interview you should carry the important verification documents listed on the following link: https://msdh.ms.gov/.

Once your application has been successfully processed you will start accessing the benefits of the program.

Contact Information for the Mississippi WIC Program:

Mississippi WIC Program
805 S. Wheatley St
Suite 400
Ridgeland, MS 39157

Phone: 601) 991-6000 or call toll-free (800) 545-6747 if outside of Jackson