How Detroit’s First Female Mayor Made History—Again, With This Major Announcement Only 4 Days in Office

Four days after being sworn in as Detroit’s first woman mayor, Mary Sheffield unveiled an innovative program that marks Detroit as the nation’s largest city to participate in a state program that could potentially pay Detroit moms and their babies $105 million in cash.

During Monday’s announcement, Sheffield said Detroit will join Rx Kids, a Michigan State University program launched in 2024, to support families at a critical stage of a child’s life. Families can use the money for essentials like utilities, diapers, food and medical care.

Within Sheffield’s first 100 days, expectant moms in Detroit will receive $1,500 during pregnancy and $500 a month for the first half-year of their baby’s life– no strings attached. The program is funded by a mix of public and private local investment, including a $500,000 annual city commitment over three years and contributions from philanthropic foundations, corporations and financial institutions.

“Rx Kids is the nation’s first-ever program that puts $4,500 directly in the pockets of new moms to help them care for their babies while improving their finances and health, and I’m so proud that Mayor Sheffield is expanding it into Detroit,” Governor Gretchen Whitmer said, as reported by detroitmi.gov.

Sheffield noted 8,000 babies are born in Detroit each year, and more than half of the city’s children live in poverty. “When we lift up families, we strengthen neighborhoods. When we support moms and babies, we invest in the long-term health, stability and success of our city,” she said.

The Rx Kids rollout comes after two national setbacks: the Department of Health and Human Services freezing $10 billion in federal childcare funds in five states over alleged “widespread fraud,” and the expiration of Affordable Care Act subsidies, which are expected to hit Black households hard.

Rx Kids rolled out to other Michigan cities like Flint, where 2024 research found that moms who were eligible for Rx Kids experienced improved financial stability, a 91 percent drop in evictions and a 13 percent decrease in postpartum depression.

Detroit follows New York in seeking innovative ways to address economic challenges for families. While New York’s approach centers on expanding access to universal child care, Detroit’s Rx Kids program offers direct, unconditional cash support to new mothers and infants—two distinct strategies for improving family outcomes.

Instagram user @meanbeanmachine25 wrote, “Straight to work just like a true [detroiter]. Good start [mayor] Sheffield keep it up 👍,” while on Facebook, some users praised the initiative, while others criticized it.

One commenter celebrated the program, writing, “Such a marvelous enriching program! Bless the city for initiating such an impactful program!”

A single mother of four wrote, “I was hoping for them to get this program while I was just pregnant because I noticed months ago Detroit wasn’t on the RX list I literally prayed for this and look at god he did it we are finally getting it.”

Another wrote, “Handing out money…. Innovative?” That sentiment was seconded by a commenter who wrote, “To keep handing out free money is not always the answer. Teaching people how to be more responsible with their lives is a better start!”

Others questioned why the program was not open to fathers and married couples, and some criticized it for promoting laziness. On X, @Patriot2020 reposted a tweet claiming the program was for illegal immigrants.

However, one Facebook user offered some advice to cut the confusion, writing, “Folks just Google RX kids and read/check it out. The program is 2yrs old, Detroit is being added to the eligible list of cities and counties for the program… Take just a couple of minutes and a lot of your questions will be answered.”

Rx Kids has delivered more than $15 million in cash to more than 3,600 Michigan families so far.