Millions of American women and children depend on WIC to support their nutritional and medical needs.
Since CVS is one of the most accessible and cost-effective pharmacies throughout America. You might be wondering if CVS takes WIC? Here is what I discovered!
Does CVS Take WIC?
CVS does take WIC benefits at most of its locations. However, whether or not a certain CVS store accepts WIC depends on the approvals of that particular state. You can call your local CVS to confirm their WIC acceptance status.
If you are interested in knowing more about the CVS policy on WIC, the list of eligible items, and more, keep on reading!
How To Use A WIC Card At CVS?
After a WIC nutritionist helps you determine your food packages every 1-3 months, you and your family’s food benefits are deposited to your WIC card every month.
Once deposited, uou can use your card throughout the 30 days to make any eligible purchases whenever you require.
The WIC card is a magnetically encoded payment card that works in the same way as any of your other debit or credit cards. To make a transaction at the checkout, follow these steps:
- Separate the eligible WIC items from all ineligible purchases.
- Pay for the WIC-approved purchases by swiping your WIC card at the card reader.
- Enter your 4 digit WIC PIN.
- Collect the receipt and check to ensure that no ineligible items made it through the transaction.
Which Items Are Eligible For Purchase Using A WIC At CVS?
Every state has a slightly different policy on the items that are eligible to be bought by a WIC and your local WIC agency will provide you with a list of qualifying items and brands to select from.
Generally, the following products qualify to be redeemed with a WIC at a CVS store.
- Eggs
- Milk and yogurt
- Cheese
- Whole wheat and other grain bread
- Vitamin C rich juices
- Canned fish
- Baby foods
- Infant cereals and infant formulas
- Breakfast cereals
- Eligible Nutritionals
To learn more about the types, requirements, and ineligible forms of the items above, you can visit the United States Department Of Agriculture website.
Can You Use The WIC Card At CVS Online?
Unfortunately, no. You can not use your WIC card to make online purchases via the CVS website. As CVS only allows online transactions to be made using the following methods of payments:
- Visa Card
- Master Card
- American Express
- Discover
Similarly, the CVS app also does not accept a WIC card as a qualifying payment method.
Do All CVS Stores Accept WIC Cards?
Unfortunately, not all CVS stores take WIC. If your local CVS accepts a WIC card or not depends on the state approval of the state.
And since each state has different policies and terms of approval regarding its WIC program, it’s best to check with your local CVS store before making any purchases, to avoid any inconveniences.
To see more details and eligibility about each state, you can visit the Nwica.org website to learn more.
Additionally, note that in 2019 the WIC program started shifting from checks to cards as a method of making transactions. Whether you receive a WIC check or card depends on the regulations of the state you reside in.
Which Other Stores Accept WIC?
Since each state approves their WIC retailers individually, whether a store accepts WIC or not depends on the state approval and regulations of that particular state.
Generally, popular stores such as Walgreens, Target, and Walmart do accept WIC in most of their stores nationwide.
To find out exactly which stores take WIC in your state, you can use this WIC store locator to confirm.
To know more, you can also see our posts on whether or not CVS takes Google Pay & Samsung Pay , if CVS accepts Care Credit, and if CVS takes EBT.
Conclusion: Does CVS Take WIC?
CVS does take WIC as of 2024. However, note that not all CVS stores nationwide accept it. To confirm if your local CVS accepts a WIC, you can consider making a call before visiting and ask for their status as a WIC retailer.
WIC-approved purchases at CVS include infant formulas, baby foods, milk, cheese, Nutritionals, and much more.
