Washington’s Women, Infants, and Children program could shutter by mid-October because of the federal government shutdown, state health officials said Wednesday.

Based on internal estimates, the program — which serves more than 212,000 low-income Washington residents annually — has roughly one to two weeks’ worth of funding left to help families buy nutritious foods, according to the state health department. How long that funding last depends on how quickly existing recipients redeem their benefits, and how long the shutdown lasts, officials said.

The shutdown is also forcing the state health department to temporarily lay off or reduce work hours for about 50 employees who are partially or fully funded by federal dollars starting Oct. 6, officials said. Most of those positions are in the

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