A Look Back and a Look Ahead: Cash Assistance Policies and their Impact on Maternal Mental Health and Early Childhood Wellbeing

Cash assistance policies have been in existence as a strategy to reduce persistently high rates of poverty for several decades. They have gained significant momentum over the past few years as a means to promote broader child and family outcomes. Existing and emerging research from these policies show promising impacts on maternal and child health, including maternal stress and early childhood wellbeing.

This webinar provided: an overview of the research and insights regarding the impacts of cash supports on maternal health, including maternal mental health, and the early health, development and wellbeing of young children and their families; and a snapshot of the federal policy landscape for cash assistance.

This webinar also surfaced key learnings and actions philanthropy can take to support the development and implementation of cash assistance policies as a strategy to improve the lives of children and families marginalized by racism, poverty and other inequities.

Moderator: Becca Graves, Executive Director, Perigee Fund

Panelists: 

• Dr. Amy Castro and Dr. Stacia West, Co-Founding Directors, Center for Guaranteed Income Research, School of Social Policy and Practice, University of Pennsylvania
• Camie Goldhammer, Founding Executive Director, Hummingbird Indigenous Family Services, representing the Hummingbird Nest, a guaranteed income program exclusively serving Indigenous communities in Washington state.
• Dr. Mona Hanna, Associate Dean for Public Health and C.S. Mott Endowed Professor of Public Health, Michigan State University College of Human Medicine, leading Flint Rx Kids, the first city-wide cash assistance program for pregnant moms and babies in Flint, Michigan.
• Pete Subkoviak, Executive Director, Resilient Families Hub, Administration for Children and Families, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services