GEORGIA WIC PROGRAM PROCEDURES MANUAL FD Lost, Stolen, Destroyed, Voided Vouchers Policy No. FD- 920.01 Effective Date: October 1, 2016

No. of Pages: 2 Revised December 2020

Page 1 of 2

Policy Food instruments (FI) that are lost, stolen, damaged, voided or securely destroyed prior to or following issuance must be documented. Any suspected instances of fraud associated with the lost, stolen, or damaged vouchers must be reported to the Office of Inspector General’s WIC Investigations Unit. Stolen or damaged food instruments may be replaced. Local agencies are prohibited from replacing lost food instruments, unless proof of casualty loss is presented (i.e., insurance claim forms) or a state of emergency has been declared for the area where the reporting participant resides or under limited circumstances including, vouchers lost during mailing, car repossession or home displacement. Replacement vouchers must only be issued for food instruments that have not been redeemed. Complete and submit the Lost, Stolen, Destroyed, Voided Voucher Report to Gainwell Technologies and State Office within three days. Retrievable vouchers must be voided in the front-end system prior to re-issuance.

Purpose To track vouchers that are stolen, damaged or under limited circumstances reported as lost.

Procedures

I. Complete the following when replacing issued vouchers that are reported as damaged or stolen:

A. Replace damaged FIs, if the participant returns FIs that are identifiable. 1. Void the FIs as “Damaged” in the computer and replace FIs. 2. Shred and discard of damaged FIs.

B. Replace damaged FIs due to property fire upon receipt of a copy of the fire report.

1. Verify in GWIS.net that the damaged FIs have not been redeemed. 2. Document the date of the fire and the fire report number in the “WIC Notes” field on the “Intake” screen and the voucher receipt.

C. Replace stolen vouchers upon receipt of a police report from the participant, or if stolen as a result of domestic violence, a police report or letter of placement from a family violence shelter.

1. Verify in GWIS.net that the stolen FIs have not been redeemed. 2. If any of the FIs have been redeemed and the participant states she/he did not redeem them, call the State Office to obtain an image of the FI. 3. Check if the signature on the FI matches the signature on the WIC ID card. If it does not match, then replace the FIs. If it does match, do not replace the FIs and review the “Rights and Responsibilities” form with the participant/ parent/guardian, – caretaker of an infant/child, alternate-proxy.

GEORGIA WIC PROGRAM PROCEDURES MANUAL FD Lost, Stolen, Destroyed, Voided Vouchers Policy No. FD- 920.01 Effective Date: October 1, 2016

No. of Pages: 2 Revised December 2020

Page 2 of 2

4. Document the date of the theft and the police report number in the “WIC Notes” field on the “Intake” screen. 5. Replace vouchers after a (7) day waiting period to ensure vouchers have not been redeemed. 6. Notify the Office of Inspector General’s WIC Investigations Unit.

Gainwell Technologies II. Complete and submit the Lost, Stolen, Destroyed, Voided Voucher Report to Gainwell Technologies, State Office and local agency district office.

1. Submit the report within three days of completion to Elizabeth Vaughn at evaughn4@dxc.com or by fax to (913) 469-5804 and Operations Program Specialist. 2. Submit the report to the local agency’s district office within three days of clinic completion. 3. Maintain reports according to the retention policy.

Authority 7 CFR § 246.12 (q) Definitions/Supporting Information “Food instrument” or “FI”- means a negotiable financial instrument by which WIC benefits are provided to participants. Food instruments can provide either specific amounts of WIC authorized foods or formulas or a fixed-dollar amount for participants to obtain WIC authorized fruits and vegetables (referred to as a “Cash Value Voucher” or “CVV”). Food instruments are also referred to as “checks” or “vouchers.” Cash Value Vouchers are also referred to as “Fruit and Vegetable Vouchers.”

Original Food Instruments - The first set of food instruments issued to a participant.

Replacement Food Instruments- Food instruments that are used to replace original food instruments.