WIC Consortium Territories Launch EBT System, eWIC

This past spring, CMA and the Arizona WIC Consortium continued the roll-out of eWIC and electronic benefits transfer (EBT) system. 

eWIC replaces paper checks with a card, providing customers and retailers with flexibility and efficiency. Guam, Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI), the Navajo Nation, and American Samoa are part of this consortium have all recently launched eWIC.

"When we had the check system, the participants had to purchase everything on the check or else you would lose out on some food benefits because there would be nothing else to indicate that you still had a balance on your check. You could only shop with those checks one time," said CNMI WIC Administrator Erin Angela Camacho. Now, participants can go to the store as many times as they need, she noted.

CMA's WIC solution, HANDS, is the most current, custom-built WIC application in the nation. Beyond EBT readiness, other features include a flexible, modern architecture, high levels of security, and a user-friendly and intuitive interface.

For more press on these implementations, please visit:

• WIC to start using new electronic card system (Saipan Tribune)
• WIC program launches eWIC (The Guam Daily Post)

The U.S. Department of Agriculture has mandated that all WIC programs in the nation have EBT by 2020.