Nevada WIC program offices to close due to federal shutdown, officials say

Offices for Nevada’s nutrition assistance program for women and children are expected to close this week due to the ongoing federal government shutdown, and a program tribal and rural communities rely on will be suspended, officials said.

The Nevada Women, Infants and Children program’s offices will close Friday, but food benefits will continue to be available to current participants, according to Elizabeth Ray, spokesperson for the governor’s office.

“The state is seeking funds to ensure there is no disruption to benefits, but without additional funding all WIC services will be impacted,” Ray said in a Wednesday statement.

Nevada’s WIC offices provide nutrition education and counseling, breastfeeding education, health screenings, prenatal care, family planning and family support services, according to Ray. While the shutdown continues, families will be able to continue to use their EBT cards at authorized grocery stores and retailers to purchase approved food items, Ray said.

A separate nutrition assistance program for tribal communities reopened Thursday after it was temporarily shut down due to the federal government shutdown.

The WIC program for the Inter-Tribal Council of Nevada, which represents the state’s 28 tribal nations, had expected to close Thursday due to the shutdown. It was able to reopen Thursday after receiving funds from the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Food and Nutrition Service to keep operations open through Oct. 31. The funds have allowed the program to immediately reactive vendors and resume in-person and remote appointments.

“We’re relieved to reopen our doors and continue supporting the families who depend on WIC,” said Program Director Blanca Plascencia-Reyna, in a statement. “Our team worked tirelessly to ensure a smooth restart. However, the uncertainty around future funding remains deeply concerning — not just for ITCN, but for WIC agencies across the nation.”

The program serves more than 530 tribal and non-tribal families across the state, providing them with nutritious foods, breastfeeding support and nutrition education, according to Plascencia-Reyna.

How to stay informed

When the WIC program was temporarily closed, the council encouraged participants to stay informed through the WICShopper app, the program’s social media page and its office line at 775-398-4960. It also is working to make food pantries and other resources available to rural areas and was directing families to Nevada’s WIC program, Plascencia-Reyna said.

Nevada WIC will provide updates to participants through the WICShopper app, the NevadaWIC.org website as well as alerts through text messages.

Tribal leaders in Nevada expressed concerns about the long-term effects the program’s pause will have.

Cathi Tuni, chairwoman of the Paiute-Shoshone Tribe of the Fallon Reservation and Colony, which is about an hour outside of Reno, said the program’s pause will have an impact on families who are already seeing an increase in prices.

She is not sure when families in her tribe received their last supplement with the program, whether it was on Friday or a month ago. How long the shutdown continues will determine the effect the program’s pause will have, she said.

“If they have enough to get by 60 days and the shutdown is resolved maybe next week or in another 20 days, they should be safe,” Tuni said.

Brian Mason, tribal chairman of the Shoshone-Paiute Tribes of the Duck Valley Indian reservation, said the number of families on the reservation who rely on nutrition assistance varies throughout the year. Because his tribe is self-governing, he isn’t sure how much it relies on the Inter-Tribal Council of Nevada’s WIC program.

“We’re fortunate in that we have cash on hand, and we’re not totally reliant on the government’s budget,” he said.

Contact Jessica Hill at jehill@reviewjournal.com. Follow @jess_hillyeah on X.