Is a WIC Start a Better Start? Evaluating WIC’s Impact on Infant Health Using Program Introduction Hilary Hoynes, Marianne Page, and Ann Huff Stevens (Affiliates in Economics)
A large body of literature evaluates the extent to which the
Supplemental Program for Women Infants and Children (WIC) has
accomplished the goal of improving nutritional well-being and
health of low income families, but most studies have been based
on research designs that compare program participants to
non-participants. If selection into these programs is non-random,
then such comparisons will lead to biased estimates of the
program’s true effects. In this study, investigators use the
rollout of the WIC program across counties to estimate the impact
of the program on infant health.
Summary:
Researchers find that the implementation of WIC lead to an
increase in average birthweight and a decrease in the fraction of
births that are classified as low birthweight. They find no
evidence that these estimates are driven by changes in fertility,
and back-of-the-envelope calculations suggest that the initiation
of WIC lead to a ten percent increase in the birthweight of
infants born to participating mothers.
Marianne Page is a Professor of Economics and
Co-Director of the Center for Poverty & Inequality Research
at UC Davis. She has authored numerous scholarly articles
focusing on low-income families. A labor economist, she is
an expert on intergenerational mobility and equality of
opportunity in the United States. She has also published on
issues related to the U.S.
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