PGR News from the Pacific

Posted 11:22 PM by Tevita

A $4.5 million program to improve the nutrition of low-income women and children is being launched in the Northern Mariana Islands.

From: Pacific Magazine

The Women, Infants and Children (WIC) program will open in two weeks, said Acting Governor Tim P. Villagomez, as a press conference today. The program is using a $4.5 million grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture to fund the nutrition activities.

“Better nutrition means healthier women and children, and better health means reduced medical cost,” said Villagomez.

The program will be run by the commonwealth’s Division of Public Health. Children up to five years old who are considered “nutritional risk” are included under this program. This is based on the premise that those children are in their critical period of growth and need better nutrition to help prevent medical and development problems.

Public Health Acting Secretary Lynn Tenorio estimated that close to 5,000 women, infants and children in the CNMI can benefit from the program. The target population of the program includes low-income, nutritionally at risk pregnant women, breastfeeding women, postpartum women, infants from 12 months old and children up to five years of age.

Josephine Tudela is the director of the program, which has a 13-person staff. Participants must meet income guidelines, CNMI residency requirements and be individually determined by health professionals as “nutrition risk.”

Tenorio said the program is opened to all Northern Marianas residents and not just U.S. citizens. She said she expects the number of participants to increase, as the original estimate was made about two years ago.

“To be eligible on the basis of income, applicants’ income must fall at or below 185 percent of the U.S. Poverty Income Guidelines (currently $35,798 for a family of four),” according to a fact sheet. “A person who participates or has family members who participate in certain other benefit programs, such as the Food Stamp Program, Medicaid, or Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, automatically meets the income eligibility requirement.”

Two major types of nutrition risk are recognized for WIC eligibility. They include medically-based risks such as anemia, underweight, overweight, history of pregnancy complications or poor pregnancy outcomes, and dietary risks, such as failure to meet the dietary guidelines or inappropriate nutrition guidelines.

Participants will receive checks or vouchers to purchase specific foods each month that are designed to supplement their diets.

The WIC program receives all of its funds from the U.S. government. Of the $4.5 million for this fiscal year, $3.2 million will be for food and $1.2 million for administrative cost.

The program is available in all 50 U.S. states, American Samoa, Guam, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, and 34 Indian Tribal Organizations.



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DIVA-GIS	Friday, July 27, 2007 Posted 11:22 PM by Tevita A $4.5 million program to improve the nutrition of low-income women and children is being launched in the Northern Mariana Islands. From: Pacific Magazine The Women, Infants and Children (WIC) program will open in two weeks, said Acting Governor Tim P. Villagomez, as a press conference today. The program is using a $4.5 million grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture to fund the nutrition activities. “Better nutrition means healthier women and children, and better health means reduced medical cost,” said Villagomez. The program will be run by the commonwealth’s Division of Public Health. Children up to five years old who are considered “nutritional risk” are included under this program. This is based on the premise that those children are in their critical period of growth and need better nutrition to help prevent medical and development problems. Public Health Acting Secretary Lynn Tenorio estimated that close to 5,000 women, infants and children in the CNMI can benefit from the program. The target population of the program includes low-income, nutritionally at risk pregnant women, breastfeeding women, postpartum women, infants from 12 months old and children up to five years of age. Josephine Tudela is the director of the program, which has a 13-person staff. Participants must meet income guidelines, CNMI residency requirements and be individually determined by health professionals as “nutrition risk.” Tenorio said the program is opened to all Northern Marianas residents and not just U.S. citizens. She said she expects the number of participants to increase, as the original estimate was made about two years ago. “To be eligible on the basis of income, applicants’ income must fall at or below 185 percent of the U.S. Poverty Income Guidelines (currently $35,798 for a family of four),” according to a fact sheet. “A person who participates or has family members who participate in certain other benefit programs, such as the Food Stamp Program, Medicaid, or Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, automatically meets the income eligibility requirement.” Two major types of nutrition risk are recognized for WIC eligibility. They include medically-based risks such as anemia, underweight, overweight, history of pregnancy complications or poor pregnancy outcomes, and dietary risks, such as failure to meet the dietary guidelines or inappropriate nutrition guidelines. Participants will receive checks or vouchers to purchase specific foods each month that are designed to supplement their diets. The WIC program receives all of its funds from the U.S. government. Of the $4.5 million for this fiscal year, $3.2 million will be for food and $1.2 million for administrative cost. The program is available in all 50 U.S. states, American Samoa, Guam, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, and 34 Indian Tribal Organizations. * Comments: Post a Comment	Archive October 2002 November 2002 December 2002 January 2003 February 2003 March 2003 April 2003 May 2003 June 2003 July 2003 August 2003 September 2003 October 2003 November 2003 December 2003 January 2004 February 2004 March 2004 April 2004 May 2004 June 2004 July 2004 August 2004 September 2004 October 2004 November 2004 December 2004 January 2005 February 2005 March 2005 April 2005 May 2005 June 2005 July 2005 August 2005 September 2005 October 2005 November 2005 December 2005 January 2006 February 2006 March 2006 April 2006 May 2006 June 2006 July 2006 August 2006 September 2006 October 2006 November 2006 December 2006 January 2007 February 2007 March 2007 April 2007 May 2007 June 2007 July 2007 August 2007 September 2007 October 2007 November 2007 December 2007 January 2008 February 2008 March 2008 April 2008 May 2008 June 2008 July 2008 August 2008 September 2008 October 2008 November 2008 December 2008 January 2009 February 2009 March 2009 April 2009 May 2009 June 2009 July 2009 August 2009 September 2009 October 2009 November 2009 January 2010 RSS Feed Alternative feed Contact Tevita Something new: Agrobiodiversity Weblog: For discussions of conservation and sustainable use of the genetic resources of crops, livestock and their wild relatives. 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