Colorado pilots guaranteed income program for new moms

By Robert Davis

Credit: Kevin Liang/Unsplash

New mothers over the age of 18 who are experiencing economic hardship could qualify for a new guaranteed income program aimed at supporting maternal and infant health.

 The program is called the Healthy Beginnings Project, and it will provide 20 new moms with $750 monthly payments for 15 months. Payments are made biweekly, and the first payments were distributed via debit cards on Nov. 30, 2023. Participants can receive an additional $600 in cash incentives for attending medical appointments as well.

 A company called Goldbug, which makes infant and children’s accessories, is leading the initiative in partnership with national nonprofits such as Income Movement and Impact Charitable, both of which have partnered with other Colorado-based guaranteed income programs like Elevate Boulder and the Denver Basic Income Project.

“The maternal health crisis is sadly nothing new, but meaningful solutions to it are,” Goldbug CEO Katherine Gold said in a press release. “My hope is that this program can help us build toward a future in which new moms and their babies have the peace of mind and proven benefits of financial stability, not just in Colorado, but across the country.”

Maternal and infant health has become a growing concern in Colorado, and across the U.S. since the pandemic began. A report from the Government Accountability Office found that pregnant women became more susceptible to medical complications from COVID-19, including severe illness and death because the virus impacted their already weakened cardiovascular and immune systems.

In turn, the maternal death rate for Black women grew from 44 per 100,000 live births to 68.9 per 100,000 between 2019 and 2021, an increase of 56.5%, the GAO found. The maternal death rate for white and Latinx women also increased by 53% and 44%, respectively.

Federal programs like the expanded Child Tax Credit in 2021 were designed to help these households afford necessary costs like medical care, but few recipients spent their benefits on these items. Instead, data from the Niskanen Center found that CTC recipients spent 58% of their benefits on housing and food. Less than 5% of the benefits were spent on health care costs. These figures were even higher for families on the lowest end of the income spectrum.

Recent research from Columbia University suggests that providing cash benefits to expectant mothers in low-income earning households can improve health outcomes for mothers and infants alike. First, cash benefits can give expectant mothers resources to access health care and stable housing. The benefit can also reduce stressors that contribute to unhealthy births, according to the research.

“As a result, the presence (or absence) of more (or less) income in the pregnancy period may enhance (or jeopardize) birth and infant outcomes,” the research states. “And these resources and deficits can impact health, development, and well-being throughout the life course.”