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Tax Season
Working families may be eligible for tax credits worth thousands of dollars, especially here in California with
the state EITC
- and free help filing their taxes - even if they did not earn enough in 2016 to owe income tax! See our
February WIC Can Help
info and referrals to help WIC households this tax season.
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10-Minute Calming Techniques
The news has been moving fast lately, and many of us are "plugged in" to a stream of information for long hours every day. Check out
this toolbox of techniques
to combat mental distress and mental fatigue. Check out the relaxed breathing video.
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Shopping at Amazon?
Support CWA without spending anything extra by using
AmazonSmile!
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Did someone share this with you? Sign up here to get the CWA Flash directly!
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ACA Post-Inauguration First Steps
The first 100 days of a new Administration is a time of expected changes, and President Trump had promised he would move boldly. His actions these two plus weeks, both internationally and domestically, while framed as strategies to protect and support America, have created havoc, with unpopular concepts and poorly executed rollout. California, with a global economy, forward thinking policies and diverse population could be especially impacted. Lawmakers are
pushing back
and setting boundaries to protect gains in jobs, the climate, health care and our diverse communities. A few
bills
and
legal strategies
are rolling out. Starting with the
Women's March
, the largest in history, individuals have been speaking out, many for the first time.
CA's Rep. McClintock's town hall
made news with large and vocal crowds. One way to voice your opinion is to attend a town hall.
ACTION:
Check here for a
Town Hall schedule
, or call your
representative
.
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Affordable Care Act Update
This week, House Republicans are expected to mark up
three Affordable Care Act (ACA) bills
discussed in hearings last week. The more conservative members of the House Republican Caucus, concerned about recent discussions of "repairing" the law instead of full repeal, are pushing to have as much of the ACA repealed as possible. At the same time, members of the House and Senate are receiving correspondence and telephone calls from constituents expressing concerns about repeal without replacement. Analyses of the ACA indicate losses due to a repeal, rather than steady improvements. Widespread impacts would include
a million plus lost jobs
and
18 million
Americans left without health coverage. Women are at risk to
lose breastfeeding support
. Use of the complex budget reconciliation process is planned for moving the bills forward. ACTION: Check out this
video
to better understand budget reconciliation.
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CDPH Releases WIC Mobile Website
WIC just got easier! Open your smartphone browser and visit m.wic.ca.gov to use the new CA WIC Mobile Website! With just a few taps you can search WIC clinic locations-including maps, hours, and phone numbers or find a WIC authorized grocer. The WIC food list is provided to assist while shopping! WIC eligibility and services information and participant's individual information can be accessed. Congratulations CA WIC staff on this useful tool!
ACTION: Visit the
CA WIC website
for materials and more information.
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Take an Online Survey About WIC and CalFresh
Do you work with low-income parents and young children? Are you a family who participates or used to participate in WIC and/or CalFresh? If yes, CFPA wants to hear from you!
California Food Policy Advocates
is conducting an online and telephone survey to learn more about the food and nutrition needs of families with children under the age of 5.
Responses will inform CFPA's future advocacy toward improving access to WIC and CalFresh.
ACTION:
Take the
online survey
by February 18th to be entered into a $100 raffle! Please
share the survey and flyers
widely with your network, clients, families, and friends.
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Save $ on the CWA Conference!
We're glad so many of you have already registered for the
CWA 2017 Annual Conference and Trade Show
, April 9-12 in San Diego! Make sure your colleagues know about the forward-thinking learning opportunities in plenary and workshop sessions. You'll discover tools & strategies and engage in discussion toward not only maintaining WIC as the nation's premier nutrition and breastfeeding program, but toward WIC remaining an important and trusted resource in different communities. Come for outstanding professional education, networking and wellness activities. ACTION: Register in the next 10 days to get in on early bird pricing! Share the conference information with one local partner.
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Showcase Your Local Agency at Conference
It's time to share with your colleagues what works well in your local agency! Peer-to-peer sharing is how great ideas and strategies are spread and scaled up. Reserve a Local Agency Sharing Exhibit table at the conference to share best practices in peer counseling, wellness, management, participant-centered education, and more!
ACTION:
Download the application on the
conference webpage
and submit it by March 10. Questions?Contact
Sarah at CWA.
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Involved Dads Help Kids Get School-Ready
A parenting program where fathers engage with their preschool-aged children through reading was found to boost the fathers' parenting skills while also improving the children's school readiness and behavior, finds a
recent study out of NYU
. 126 low-income fathers and their children were recruited across three Head Start centers in New York City. The study evaluated the effects of the program on parenting skills, child behavior and language, and outcomes for fathers, including stress and depression. The researchers found that parenting behaviors and children's behaviors and language development improved significantly relative to non-participants with more than a 30 percent improvement in parenting and school readiness outcomes.
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Marijuana Use in Pregnancy
As more states legalize marijuana or its medical use,
a national survey
shows that almost 4 percent of pregnant women say they have used marijuana in the past month, and that number nearly doubles in pregnant women 18-25 years old. Many pregnant women presume that cannabis has no consequences for developing infants, but a growing body of research suggests otherwise: tetrahydrocannabinol, or THC, can cross the placenta to reach the fetus, potentially harming brain development, cognition and birth weight. One study showed that
6-year-olds
born to mothers who had smoked one joint or more daily in the first trimester showed a decreased ability to understand concepts in listening and reading; another showed
at age 10
, children exposed to THC in utero were more impulsive than other children and less able to focus their attention. The
AAP
and
ACOG
both advise against prenatal cannabis use.
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Farmers' Market Use
The CDC provides some
analysis
on Washington state SNAP beneficiaries' use of SNAP at Farmers Markets related to provision of additional Food Insecurity Nutrition Incentive (FINI) and also proximity to markets. Use of geo-mapping could help understand purchasing patterns of fruits and vegetable at Farmer's Markets.
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Digital Storytelling for Public Health
Hearing and seeing ordinary people's stories can be very meaningful when describing the impact of a program or creating better understanding. The non-profit
StoryCenter
works with individuals and organizations to use storytelling and participatory media for reflection, education, and social change. In addition to workshops, check out their 2017
Public Health Webinar Series
looking at ethics, sensitive stories, research and more.
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