Estimating Eligibility and Participation for the WIC Program: Phase I Report (2001)
Chapter: Appendix A: Glossary
APPENDIX A
Glossary
Adjunctive Eligibility
Any individual who is categorically eligible and is receiving or is certified to receive either cash assistance (Temporary Assistance for Needy Families), food stamps, or Medicaid. In general, proof of certification in these programs is sufficient for verifying income eligibility for WIC. In some states, proof of certification in other transfer programs (e.g., Free and Reduced Price School Lunch, Low Income Energy Assistance) is sufficient for verifying income eligibility for WIC also.
Categorical Eligibility
To be eligible for WIC benefits, the individual must be: (1) a women who is pregnant; (2) a woman who is breastfeeding her infant and is less than 12 months postpartum; (3) a woman who is not breastfeeding her infant and is less than 6 months postpartum; 4) a child less than 5 years old; or (5) an infant less than 1 year old.
Certification Period
The time period for which a fully eligible person is approved to receive WIC benefits. In general, infants can be certified for an entire year, preg
nant women can be certified from the time they become pregnant until 6 weeks postpartum, and both children and postpartum women are certified for 6-month periods.
Core Estimates of Eligibility
The estimated number of income eligible infants and children. The core estimates of infants are used as the basis to estimate the number of income eligible pregnant and postpartum women.
Coverage Rate
The average monthly number of persons issued WIC food instruments in a calendar year (from administrative records) divided by the estimated number of individuals fully eligible for WIC in the same calendar year.
Economic Unit or Family
WIC program rules define the economic unit as a group of related or nonrelated individuals who are living together as one economic unit. The WIC eligibility estimates currently use the Census Bureau’s definition of the family to define the economic unit, which is defined as all persons related by blood or marriage who live together.
Food Instrument
A voucher or check that can be exchanged for food in a participating retail grocery store. The food instrument lists the quantities of specific foods, including brand names, that can be purchased at the authorized vendor. Food instruments vary according to the participant’s eligibility category.
Full Eligibility
Any individual who meets both income eligibility requirements and is assessed to be nutritionally at risk
Full-Funding Participation
The number of fully eligible individuals who wish to participate given the current budget for administrating the WIC Program.
Income Eligibility
Any individual who is categorically eligible and is either adjunctively eligible or has income less than 185 percent of poverty, defined by federal guidelines according to family size.
Nutritionally at Risk
Any individual assessed by a competent professional with a condition that puts them at risk for poor nutritional conditions. There are five broad nutritional risk criteria: (1) anthropometric risk (e.g., height and weight); (2) biochemical risk (e.g., low hematocrit); (3) medical risk (e.g., diabetes mellitus); (4) dietary risk (e.g., inappropriate dietary patterns); and (5) predisposing nutritional risk factors (e.g., homelessness).
Poverty Line
Department of Health and Human Services poverty guidelines, which depend on family size alone.
Prediction Error Rate
The percentage difference between the estimated number of full-funding participants and the actual number of reported participants in a given year.
