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Extreme House Republicans’ Chaos Is Marching America Toward a Shutdown That Would Jeopardize Vital Nutrition Assistance for Nearly 7 Million Vulnerable Moms and Young Children

Extreme House Republicans’ Chaos Is Marching America Toward a Shutdown That Would Jeopardize Vital Nutrition Assistance for Nearly 7 Million Vulnerable Moms and Young Children

With less than one week before the end of the fiscal year, extreme House Republicans are playing partisan games with peoples’ lives and marching our country toward a government shutdown that would have damaging impacts across the country—including putting vital nutrition assistance at risk for nearly 7 million women and children who rely on the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC)—a program that serves nearly half of babies born in this country.
 
During an Extreme Republican Shutdown, women and children who count on WIC would soon start being turned away at grocery store counters, with a federal contingency fund drying up after just a few days and many states left with limited WIC funds to operate the program.
 
And the reason food assistance for these families is at risk is extreme House Republicans’ continued efforts to slash funding for vital programs, including WIC, rather than work in a bipartisan manner to keep the government open and address emergency needs for the American people. House Republicans have turned their backs on the bipartisan budget deal that a large majority of them voted for just a few months ago and proposed a continuing resolution (CR) that makes devastating cuts to programs that millions of hardworking Americans count on. While House Republicans continue to debate what CR to advance, they have consistently refused to include the Administration’s request for additional WIC funding that’s needed to ensure the program can serve every eligible pregnant woman, new mother, and infant and young child. Without the Administration’s funding request, states could soon be forced to institute waiting lists for WIC, causing mothers and children to lose access to the vital nutrition assistance.
 
Below is a state-by-state breakdown of the number of women and children at risk of losing critical nutrition assistance under an Extreme Republican Shutdown:

State Total WIC Recipients Women Children Infants
Alabama 111,999 25,295 57,863 28,841
Alaska 18,484 4,000 10,492 3,992
Arizona 139,765 28,879 79,639 31,247
Arkansas 65,272 15,798 32,185 17,289
California 972,418 206,282 587,139 178,997
Colorado 87,752 19,916 49,214 18,622
Connecticut 47,236 9,990 25,609 11,637
Delaware 20,313 4,169 11,480 4,664
District of Columbia 11,718 2,959 5,668 3,091
Florida 421,294 97,869 225,544 97,881
Georgia 220,842 50,801 112,601 57,440
Hawaii 26,205 5,692 15,027 5,486
Idaho 30,766 6,718 17,607 6,441
Illinois 167,903 38,009 85,775 44,119
Indiana 148,179 33,280 80,497 34,402
Iowa 58,126 12,274 32,493 13,359
Kansas 47,399 10,471 26,197 10,731
Kentucky 119,884 24,169 68,821 26,894
Louisiana 96,890 26,232 42,030 28,628
Maine 18,356 3,693 10,605 4,058
Maryland 123,101 28,417 66,963 27,721
Massachusetts 125,921 24,995 76,851 24,075
Michigan 207,728 41,195 122,044 44,489
Minnesota 108,420 23,009 63,057 22,354
Mississippi 62,788 14,199 30,750 17,839
Missouri 90,913 22,650 44,217 24,046
Montana 14,107 3,010 8,035 3,062
Nebraska 36,949 7,703 21,699 7,547
Nevada 52,976 11,585 29,239 12,152
New Hampshire 13,599 2,554 8,550 2,495
New Jersey 166,841 36,534 95,921 34,386
New Mexico 36,719 9,273 18,229 9,217
New York 418,084 89,717 241,198 87,169
North Carolina 268,687 59,030 151,473 58,184
North Dakota 10,299 2,093 6,086 2,120
Ohio 179,262 42,341 93,119 43,802
Oklahoma 72,703 17,548 36,385 18,770
Oregon 78,764 16,951 47,164 14,649
Pennsylvania 177,335 39,331 97,269 40,735
Puerto Rico 92,752 19,050 52,847 20,855
Rhode Island 17,866 3,999 9,897 3,970
South Carolina 94,370 20,887 50,341 23,142
South Dakota 13,929 2,846 7,929 3,154
Tennessee 133,284 33,278 66,218 33,788
Texas 786,686 215,305 382,817 188,564
Utah 41,383 9,427 22,551 9,405
Vermont 10,975 2,168 6,905 1,902
Virginia 127,124 26,170 72,538 28,416
Washington 130,962 28,584 76,470 25,908
West Virginia 37,292 7,592 21,313 8,387
Wisconsin 91,070 18,466 53,500 19,104
Wyoming 7,484 1,745 4,028 1,711
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Official news published at https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2023/09/25/extreme-house-republicans-chaos-is-marching-america-toward-a-shutdown-that-would-jeopardize-vital-nutrition-assistance-for-nearly-7-million-vulnerable-moms-and-young-children/