More Idaho mothers to be eligible for assistance

BOISE — More mothers will be eligible for food assistance through a program for Women, Infants and Children under new income guidelines, according to the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare. The new guidelines are higher, which means more families will be eligible for the program, commonly called WIC. The program provides nutritious foods such as milk, eggs, cereal, juice and beans at no cost to families who qualify. Women who are pregnant, breast-feeding or have recently been pregnant, and kids under the age of five who have a gross income at or below 185 percent of the federal poverty rate can qualify. That means that a family of three can make up to just over $33,800 and qualify. Under the old income guidelines, that family would have been ineligible if it earned more than about $32,500.