When a baby is born in Detroit, a check arrives in the mail within days. That is the promise behind Rx Kids, a new no-strings-attached cash aid program that launched in the city and distributed more than a million dollars to over 1,000 families in its very first month. The program gives expectant and new mothers in the city a $1,500 payment shortly before or after their baby’s birth, followed by $500 every month for at least six months, making it one of the largest direct cash programs for parents anywhere in the country. Detroit joins a statewide initiative already operating in nearly three dozen Michigan communities, including Flint where the program was first launched, and has now expanded to every county across the Upper Peninsula as well.
The thinking behind Rx Kids is straightforward: the weeks surrounding a new baby’s arrival are often the most financially precarious of a family’s life, and direct cash lets parents make the decisions that best fit their own circumstances without bureaucratic conditions attached. One mother of twins enrolled in the program said the payments gave her the relief and security she needed not to worry about rent for six months. The program is led by Michigan State University and administered by a nonprofit, with bipartisan state funding accounting for the majority of its annual budget in Detroit. Michigan lawmakers have committed more than $300 million to the program over the past three years, reflecting broad support for a model that researchers say improves maternal health, infant outcomes and long-term financial stability for families. With roughly 8,000 babies born in Detroit each year, city officials estimate the program has the potential to deliver tens of millions of dollars annually in direct support to the families who need it most.
Source: https://www.yahoo.com/news/articles/detroit-cash-aid-program-parents-133959568.html
