Glossary of Terms Used in WIC

• Applicant -- A pregnant, breastfeeding, or post-partum woman, or an infant or child younger than 5, who is to be evaluated to see if he or she can qualify to receive WIC benefits. Applicants who qualify for the WIC program become participants.
  
• Approved Foods -- Those specific foods which the WIC state office, using USDA standards, has approved for the current year for participants to receive in exchange for WIC vouchers.
  
• Baby-friendly -- The designation given to hospitals that choose to implement the 10 steps to successful breastfeeding developed by the World Health Organization and UNICEF.
  
• Category -- Classification of a person as being a pregnant, post-partum, or breastfeeding woman; an infant from birth to 12 months; or a child older than 12 months and younger than 5 years.
  
• Certification -- The process by which applicants are determined by the CPA to be eligible to receive WIC benefits. The applicant is checked for category, residence, income, and nutritional need. Initial certification is the first time an applicant is deemed eligible to receive WIC benefits. Re-certification of clients at regular intervals is known as "sub-cert".
  
• Client -- Our customer; the WIC participant.
  
• CPA -- Competent Professional Authority; a WIC staffer who provides final approval for WIC eligibility. (It has nothing to do with accounting!)
  
• Dietary Recall -- A summation of the applicant's diet, provided by "recalling" all foods and beverages ingested in the past 24 hours to assist clinicians in evaluating dietary needs and determining the applicant's eligibility for WIC.
  
• Food Package -- The specific group of approved foods "prescribed" for the dietary needs of each WIC participant. A client's food package may include milk, infant formula, cheese, cereal, juice, eggs, beans, peanut butter, tuna, and carrots. The food packages vary according to participant's category and nutritional needs.
  
• Food Vouchers -- Documentation showing the "prescribed" food package issued to each WIC participant. These vouchers are traded by the client at authorized stores in exchange for the approved foods specified on the vouchers.
  
• Gateway Program -- The three programs -- Food Stamps, Medicaid, and Aid to Families with Dependent Children -- that serve applicants with an income which either meets or is lower than WIC eligibility guidelines for income. Thus, any WIC applicant who is already in one of these three gateway programs automatically meets income eligibility for WIC.
  
• Local Agency (LA) -- One of more than 80 local public and private non-profit health agencies and several public health regions which contract with the Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS) to deliver WIC services.
  
• Mother-friendly -- The designation given to businesses that choose to support their breastfeeding employees by providing a clean, private place for the company's working moms to pump milk for their babies.
  
• NAWD -- The National Associated of WIC Directors (members include Texas WIC nutrition coordinators and local-agency directors).
  
• PFA -- Patient-flow analysis; a method by which trained WIC staff maintain optimal flow of client traffic in clinics.
  
• Participant -- A client or customer of the WIC program.
  
• SIF -- Supplemental Information Form (WIC-35-1), which must be signed by each applicant, even those determined to be ineligible to receive WIC benefits.
  
• State Agency -- The group of workers at the Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS) (most in the Bureau of Clinical and Nutrition Services) which is responsible for the WIC program statewide.
  
• TALWD -- The Texas Association of Local WIC Directors (members include Texas WIC nutrition coordinators and local-agency directors).
  
• TDH -- The Texas Department of State Health Services (DSHS), which oversees the state's WIC program.
  
• Texas WIC -- The WIC program in Texas managed by the state agency.
  
• Texas WIN -- The WIC Information Network; the computer software application that supports the operation of the local agencies. It is through Texas WIN that applicants are certified, food packages are identified, and vouchers are issued and tracked.
  
• USDA -- The United States Department of Agriculture, which funds and oversees the WIC program.
  
• Vendor -- A commercial entity, such as a grocery store, where WIC food vouchers are redeemed.
  
• WABA -- The World Alliance for Breastfeeding Action; a people's initiative to globally protect, promote, and support breastfeeding.

Adapted from Texas WIC News, Sep 1998, article by Judith Cayton Devin, Training Specialist

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