Hope arrived for mothers across Wayne County as County Executive Warren C. Evans announced a $7.5 million investment to launch the Rx Kids program in River Rouge, Hamtramck, Highland Park, Inkster, Melvindale, and Dearborn. The initiative offers unconditional financial support to pregnant mothers and newborns, designed to strengthen families and improve maternal and infant health outcomes.
“Every baby deserves a strong start,” Evans said. “When we invest in moms and babies, we give families hope, support, and a chance to build a better future.”
The county’s investment expands the work of Rx Kids, an evidence-based program that has already reshaped what early childhood support can look like across Michigan. Established in Flint through a partnership with Dr. Mona Hanna-Attisha, Michigan State University, and community organizations, the initiative provides direct cash assistance to expectant mothers and new parents without restrictions, conditions, or work requirements.
Under the Wayne County expansion, eligible mothers will receive $1,500 during pregnancy and $500 per month during their baby’s first six months of life. The goal is to address economic instability during one of the most critical periods of family development. The funding combines Wayne County’s commitment with state Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) dollars, creating a layered investment in the region’s maternal-infant health and long-term community well-being.
Rx Kids was first piloted in Flint, where families facing historic environmental and economic challenges became the center of a new kind of social prescription—one rooted in trust and equity. The program’s outcomes there have shown how unconditional support can change the trajectory of early childhood: reducing preterm births, improving maternal health, and giving caregivers the breathing room needed to focus on nurturing instead of survival.
The model has since expanded to other Michigan cities, including Ypsilanti, Pontiac, Kalamazoo, Royal Oak Township, Hazel Park, and Clare County, where the state invested $270 million to extend the program to additional communities over the next three years. That same spirit of investment now reaches deeper into Wayne County—home to some of Michigan’s most resilient families, many of whom have long navigated the effects of economic disinvestment and racialized poverty.
Each participating city reflects a community that has carried the weight of inequity while raising generations determined to rise above it. Programs like Rx Kids confront those structural realities by offering what research and lived experience have both made clear—when families have financial stability from the start, communities grow stronger, healthier, and more connected.
As applications open for pregnant mothers and new parents, the message from Wayne County leadership is clear: the well-being of families is a collective responsibility.
This expansion is policy grounded in evidence and dignity.
With this latest step, Rx Kids continues to redefine what it means to care for families in Michigan. It is a promise that the first months of a child’s life should never be a fight to survive, but an opportunity to thrive and mothers deserve the means to make that possible.
