Social Policy and Poverty

A Michigan cash-assistance initiative called Rx Kids, which provides unconditional payments to new and expectant mothers, is drawing interest from other states and being promoted as a potential federal model amid a national affordability crisis. Program director Dr. Mona Hanna told Fox News Digital that municipalities and state leaders are approaching her team about replicating the model, which currently gives pregnant women in Detroit a $1,500 lump sum plus $500 a month for at least six months after birth. Detroit Mayor Mary Sheffield says more than 1,000 mothers applied in the first week after the city opened applications on February 9, with about $1 million already distributed, and organizers report that since 2024 the program has reached 5,600 Michigan families with over $22 million in prenatal and infancy support. Run by Michigan State University and the nonprofit GiveDirectly, Rx Kids grew out of the Flint water crisis and is now being pitched to states like Mississippi, which declared a public health emergency in 2025 after its infant mortality rate rose to 9.7 deaths per 1,000 live births. The push comes as more U.S. cities test guaranteed-income style pilots, with advocates framing these time-limited, no-strings cash transfers as a simple, “plug and play” way to stabilize families facing high housing, childcare and food costs.