In April 2020, a woman in South Portland gave birth to her first child. She was alone in a new city, during a pandemic, with no partner or family nearby. Yet there was an even more immediate concern: breastfeeding was not going well and formula was too expensive. She feared her baby would go hungry.

That fear became relief when the hospital referred her to WIC, the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children. My WIC team at The Opportunity Alliance — a nonprofit that supports people with programs and resources to improve their health, safety and stability — enrolled her and her child, and stayed connected with appointments every three months until the child turned 5.

Now a single mom of two, she still faces daily challenges. But thanks to her strength, and WIC, their family is not just surviving, they are thriving.

That peace of mind, shared by thousands of Mainers and nearly 7 million people nationwide, is in jeopardy. After legislation passed that will kick millions of people off Medicaid and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), there are additional proposed reductions to WIC funding, including severe cuts to WIC’s fruit and vegetable benefit.

As the senior director of health and nutrition at The Opportunity Alliance, I know firsthand that this would be disastrous. Our leaders in Washington, D.C., must stand up for WIC so Mainers can continue to access healthy foods.

Congress created WIC in 1974 for families with low incomes — ensuring birthing people were healthy before, during and after pregnancy, and that babies and young children were supported during the first years of life. Today, more than 18,000 Mainers participate, including more than 1 in 3 infants.

In addition to providing food benefits, expert breastfeeding and nutrition education and referrals, WIC drives more than $11 million in sales at food retailers statewide. The Opportunity Alliance’s WIC program serves 5,000 people across seven clinics in Cumberland County.

While providing money for families to buy healthy foods is a central focus, WIC’s circle of care is far broader. WIC staff screen for iron deficiency and connect families to prenatal care, dental visits, mental health support and well water testing. If a family needs car seats, WIC staff coordinate with Safe Kids Maine. If a parent needs help grocery shopping, a WIC community health worker teaches them. If a breastfeeding participant needs a pump, WIC provides it. Four farmers at the Portland Farmers Market accept WIC benefits. When there is a need, WIC is listening and helping.

For these reasons — and overwhelming evidence that WIC reduces poverty, hunger and infant mortality, while improving children’s brain development and spurring economic growth — it is inconceivable that policymakers would target WIC. And yet, some are doing just that.

The administration is proposing to slash WIC’s fruit and vegetable benefit from $52 to $13 for breastfeeding mothers, and from $26 to $10 for young children. That would harm families and farmers. Surveys of WIC participants across the country, including in Maine, show that access to fruits and vegetables is the top reason why people join and stay on WIC.

With food prices increasing, these cuts would make it even harder for families to afford nutritious food. As the National WIC Association stated, this proposal “takes healthy food off of children’s plates.”

Instead of drastically cutting WIC, policymakers should strengthen it. The Senate Appropriations Committee — led by our own Susan Collins— recently passed a bill that preserves the higher WIC fruit and vegetable benefit and ensures that anyone eligible for WIC can participate. We should all be grateful for Sen. Collins’ leadership on this effort. But fully funding WIC should be just the start.

To truly meet families where they are, Congress should pass the bipartisan Modern WIC Act, which would make WIC’s remote services and benefit issuance flexibilities permanent. Congress should also expand WIC eligibility to better support postpartum people and older children.

Five years after giving birth to her first child, the mom in South Portland can say with pride, “Because of WIC, we never went hungry.” WIC reflects the compassion and caring that make Maine a great place to live. Now it’s up to policymakers in Washington to follow our lead.