AUGUST 6, 2024



Members of Congress have left Washington to return to the districts for August recess after failing to advance the Tax Relief for American Families and Workers Act through the Senate last week. The bill had bipartisan support in the House, and would have extended child tax credit benefits to families of 16 million children, lifting as many as 400,000 kids out of poverty in the first year. The Senate vote failed 48-44, with most Republicans voting against the measure. On September 9-10, ahead of the September 30^th deadline for Congress to pass a budget agreement or (more likely) a continuing resolution, NWA will be hosting the WIC Voices Summit where state and local WIC agency staff can brush up on WIC advocacy and visit their members of Congress to provide education on the WIC program.

The California legislature returned to Sacramento on Monday after their July recess. The deadline to pass proposed laws for the year is August 31, and there are over 1300 bills on the table to be addressed. You can see CWA’s bill list for this year here. 

Two programs that increase access to fresh fruits and vegetables for California SNAP participants had been on the chopping block in the Governor's January budget proposal to help close California’s funding gap. The California Nutrition Incentive Program (CNIP) at the California Department of Food and Agriculture (CDFA) administers Market Match, a statewide program that matches spending at farmers markets by customers enrolled in CalFresh up to $15 per visit. The Calfresh Fruit and Vegetable EBT Pilot Project will allow recipients to get $1 back on their EBT cards for every $1 of CalFresh benefits spent on fruits and vegetables, up to $60 monthly. Coming on the heels of the WIC food package updates which made the increased WIC fruit and vegetable benefit permanent, CWA is thrilled to see this series of developments aimed at maintaining better nutrition for the most vulnerable California families!

Efforts at Northeast Valley Health Corp and Watts Healthcare WIC, both in Los Angeles are being featured as efforts to electronically link WIC agencies to health information exchanges (HIE) for referrals and access to data for enrollment and certification. The streamlined processes are a better user experience for patients/participants, and staff in medical clinics and WIC agencies. You can view the recording of a livestream panel of this project and another in Hawaii, read the case study and access this project summary. The project will be presented at todays NWA Technology, Innovation and Vendor Management conference. 

On September 25^th the FDA will meet to share  and hear stakeholder perspective on their proposed process for post-market assessment of chemicals, including those generally recognized as safe, such as food additives and color additives, as well as contaminants. 

Join Jackie Rodriguez, M.S., CCC-SLP, a Bilingual Speech-Language Pathologist webinar on August 20, 2024, at 10:00AM PT as she discusses the collaboration between speech-language pathologists and dietitians is critical for patients with dysphagia and feeding disorders. $30 General Registration offering maximum amount of 1 unit for RDN (CPEUs) and IBCLC/CLC/CLEC (Cerps).

“Food as medicine” initiatives are growing across the country, including in a CWA-supported bill currently before the CA legislature. Learn more about how they are working, and how they might grow. 

For the first time in Olympic history, athletes with infants and young children are being offered a nursery space, including private areas for nursing or pumping and storage for expressed milk.

Frequent use of touch-screen tablet games by toddlers may inhibit crucial interactions with their parents, according to recent research. The impact of tablet use was more pronounced in boys than girls, and increased with age. 

Start your mornings off right, with some simple breakfast ideas to give your body what it needs for these hot summer days! The August edition of the W3 Newsletter also features a healthful cookie dough recipe to help satisfy those afternoon treat cravings. Please share widely! Thank you to the students working with John Haubenstricker, American Red Cross WIC, to provide these monthly resources.

Visit our YouTube Channel to watch easy healthy food recipes like this month's Tofu Twist Cookie Dough Bliss!

As a nonprofit membership organization, CWA relies on the contributions of many organizations and individuals to help us achieve our mission. There are many ways to give of your time, talents, or resources to help CWA promote healthy families, strong communities, and bright futures! We appreciate all forms of support and invite you to join us!