Michigan’s $291.9 million cash-assistance program for pregnant women and new mothers says it is not guaranteed income. Michigan’s own welfare plan says otherwise.
Rx Kids, backed by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and administered through Michigan State University and GiveDirectly, provides pregnant women with $1,500 and another $500 per month for six or 12 months after birth. The program is universal within participating communities, imposes no income test, and places no restrictions on how recipients spend the money.
The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services’ TANF State Plan, effective January 1, defines guaranteed-income payments as regular cash payments carrying no work requirements or other conditions. The plan then identifies Rx Kids by name:
GIP payments do not count as income for the Family Independence Program. RX Kids Payments is an example of a GIP payment.
Rx Kids rejects that classification on its website. Its FAQ describes the payments as a temporary, health-focused child allowance intended to help families during pregnancy and infancy:
The payments are not meant to be a permanent income stream. ... Rx Kids and child allowances operate within the existing social and economic system.
The program’s preferred label does not change its structure. Its own policy playbook says Rx Kids is “universal,” “unconditional” and “predictable,” with every participating family receiving the same payment amounts. The document also instructs other states on using Temporary Assistance for Needy Families funds to replicate the program.
Michigan lawmakers originally appropriated $306.5 million for Rx Kids: $16.5 million in fiscal year 2024, $20 million in fiscal year 2025, another $20 million in fiscal year 2026, and $250 million from the Healthy Michigan Fund. Approximately $14.6 million in unspent fiscal year 2025 funding was later canceled, leaving roughly $291.9 million in public appropriations.
As of June 2, about $10.8 million in public funding had been spent out of nearly $292 million appropriated, less than four cents on the dollar. Rx Kids says 85 percent of state funding goes directly to families, 5 percent supports operations at Michigan State University and GiveDirectly, and 10 percent covers indirect expenses such as facilities, information technology, accounting and compliance.
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Republican lawmakers succeeded in removing a dedicated $20 million Rx Kids appropriation from Michigan’s fiscal year 2027 budget. The money was redistributed among five other categories, including prenatal-care outreach, maternal and child health administration, and supplemental payments under the state’s Family Independence Program.
Michigan House Speaker Matt Hall says Rx Kids cannot draw money from those categories, which he argues would effectively cut off its state funding. Program founder Dr. Mona Hanna maintains that eligible participants can still receive TANF reimbursements under the new budget. Until MDHHS settles the dispute, it is unclear whether Rx Kids has any remaining path to public dollars.
Rx Kids does have controls covering enrollment and payment delivery. Applicants must verify their identities, residences, and pregnancies, and suspicious applications receive additional review. The program also cross-references birth records before beginning the monthly payments.
Once the cash reaches a recipient, however, Rx Kids does not examine receipts, impose purchase restrictions, or collect transaction-level records. Hanna told lawmakers that spending data come from participant surveys:
“This is a program built on trust: trusting women, trusting mothers, trusting families to best meet their needs. ... No, we do not do monitoring.”
Hanna said 94 percent of surveyed families reported purchasing baby supplies, figures drawn entirely from self-reporting with no independent verification. She argued that direct monitoring would make the program more expensive and signal that the government does not trust participating families.
The House Oversight Committee also questioned Rx Kids about an advisory circle that included figures connected to national guaranteed-income organizations. The archived webpage listed Economic Security Project co-founders Natalie Foster and Dorian Warren, along with Community Change co-president Lorella Praeli.
That page disappeared following the June 2 hearing and now returns a 404 error. Michigan House Oversight Committee Chairman Jay DeBoyer accused Rx Kids of trying to conceal the relationships:
"Given all this, it’s telling that Dr. Mona would attempt to conceal these relationships following the hearing with the removal of information."
The timing of the removal is documented. Rx Kids has not publicly established that the page was taken down to hide those relationships.
Despite unanswered questions about its advisory relationships and its funding future, the program is expanding to more than 60 Michigan communities and expects to cover approximately 23,000 births annually. Whitmer has called the expansion a model for improving health outcomes and reducing financial pressure on families.
Rx Kids can argue that its payments are temporary, targeted and connected to maternal health. Michigan’s welfare plan nevertheless places those payments squarely inside its definition of guaranteed income. After nearly $292 million in public appropriations, taxpayers should not have to choose between the state’s official classification and the program’s public-relations language.
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