Child Participation in WIC: Medicaid Costs and Use of Healthcare Services

Objectives: We used data from birth certificates, Medicaid, and the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) to examine the relationship of child participation in WIC to Medicaid costs and use of health care services in North Carolina.

Methods: We linked Medicaid enrollment, Medicaid paid claims, and WIC participation files to birth certificates for children born in North Carolina in 1992. We used multiple regression analysis to estimate the effects of WIC participation on the use of healthcare services and Medicaid costs.

Results: Medicaid-enrolled children participating in the WIC program showed greater use of all types of health care services compared with Medicaid-enrolled children who were not WIC participants.

Conclusions: The health care needs of low-income children who participate in WIC may be better met than those of low-income children not participating in WIC.