A cash transfer program in Flint, Michigan reduced newborn deaths by half, according to research published November 2 in JAMA Pediatrics.
Rx Kids, which launched in January 2024, provides unconditional cash payments to pregnant residents and their infants. Researchers compared neonatal deaths in 2025 with deaths from 2021 through 2024 in the city. Flint's neonatal mortality rate dropped from 10 deaths per 1,000 live births to 5 deaths per 1,000 live births. Early neonatal mortality, covering deaths in the first week of life, fell from 8 per 1,000 to 2 per 1,000.
"We know how to deliver this support efficiently and with dignity," said Mona Hanna, pediatrician and Rx Kids director, in an interview with Science News. Rates were stable over the same period in the rest of Michigan.
The program is expanding to Detroit in 2025, announced by Detroit Mayor Mary Sheffield.