How to apply for Ohio WIC

View the steps to apply for the Ohio WIC program. The Ohio Department of Health administrates WIC in the state including the application process. View the steps below to see if you qualify, and if so, what you need to do to apply. If you still have questions or issues about the application process, you can contact the Ohio WIC office for assistance.

WIC Prescreening

Before you start the Ohio WIC application process, you can use the online prescreening tool to see if you qualify. Please note, this tool is not considered an application. You will still need to follow the application process for this state. It takes about 15 minutes to complete the prescreening tool.

What does the WIC program offer

The Ohio WIC program provides nutrition education, breastfeeding education and support. Supplemental, highly nutritious foods such as cereal, eggs, milk, whole grain foods, fruits and vegetables, and iron-fortified infant formula and referral to prenatal and pediatric health care and other maternal and child health and human service programs.

Ohio WIC Eligibility

The following people are eligible to apply for Ohio WIC benefits:

Pregnant women
Breastfeeding women
Women who recently had a baby
Infants birth through 12 months
Children age 1 to 5 years

Ohio WIC participants need to be:

Present at the clinic appointment
Provide proof of identity
Residents of the State of Ohio
Determined by health professionals to be at medical/nutritional risk, and
Meets income guidelines, which is 185% of Federal Poverty Income Guidelines

In order to be eligible for WIC, the gross countable income of the economic unit, of which the applicant/participant is a member, must be less than or equal to the Ohio WIC program income guidelines for economic unit size. To see if you income qualify, view the Ohio WIC Income Guidelines.

Applying for WIC in Ohio

To start the application process for Ohio WIC benefits, you need to call your local WIC clinic to schedule an appointment. WIC clinics are located in all 88 Ohio counties. If you need assistance in finding a WIC clinic near you, then call the Help Me Grow Helpline at 800-755-4769.

You can also apply by printing out a WIC Program Application and mailing it to the WIC clinic in your area. Please note that you still are required to schedule an appointment at the clinic.

What you need for your appointment

To save time at your appointment, you can also print out a health history form from the list below. Print out one health history form for each person applying. Be sure to complete the form that best describes the person:

Infant (birth to 12 months old)
Child (age 1 to 5 years)
Pregnant or
Breastfeeding woman or who has had a baby in the last 6 months and is not pregnant

The WIC staff will help you to make sure you receive health and nutrition information that is individualized to you and your family based on the information on these completed forms.

How long can I be on WIC?

Ohio WIC is considered to be a short-term program. A person receiving benefits "graduates" once their certification period ends. The certification period is the length of time a person is eligible to receive OH WIC benefits. Depending on the applicant's condition, either pregnant, postpartum, breastfeeding, or an infant/child, an eligible person will usually receive these benefits for up to 6 months to a year. Once they have reached the end of that time, they must apply for Ohio WIC again if they want to continue using it.

WIC waiting list

In some cases, if the state agency does not have enough money to serve everyone who needs WIC, they must keep a list called a waiting list. This contains a list of individuals who want to apply for the Ohio WIC program and are likely to be served. The state agency will then use a special system, called a Priority System, that will allow them to determine who is eligible to receive OH WIC benefits next once more people can be served.

The reason for this priority system is to make sure that services and benefits are available right away to participants who need it most, which are people with serious health conditions such as anemia (low blood levels), history of pregnancy problems or being underweight.

Planning to move

Anyone currently on Ohio WIC that is planning to move, including out of state, can continue receiving WIC benefits until their certification period expires. In order to do that, they must provide proof that they are receiving benefits when they move to their new location. In most cases the staff will provide you with a special card called the Verification of Certification Card (VOC).

To obtain proof, contact your current OH WIC clinic to let them know your plans. When you move, you will need to call your local WIC clinic near your new location and schedule an appointment so you can show them the proof. Make sure to take the special card with you to the appointment to show proof.