Michigan's Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) program has awarded its infant formula contract to Mead Johnson in a competitive bidding process. The five-year contract begins November 1, replacing Abbott, whose contract expires October 31.
Starting in November, WIC formula benefits will transition from Abbott Similac products to Mead Johnson Enfamil products. The Mead Johnson formulas available through the contract include Infant, ProSobee, Gentlease, AR, and Reguline.
The switch affects approximately 40,000 infants currently enrolled in the program out of the 187,000 monthly WIC participants. The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services (MDHHS) noted that competitive bidding for infant formula is required by the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), which funds WIC. State programs receive rebates from formula manufacturers on each unit of contract infant formula provided to participants, which helps the program expand enrollment.
In addition to infant formula, WIC provides participants nutrition education, breastfeeding support including lactation services and access to breast pumps, and supplemental foods such as milk, cheese, yogurt, fruits, vegetables, whole grains, eggs, cereal, peanut butter, and dry beans.