Direct cash eliminates the costly and labor intensive administrative burden associated with other forms of financial support. Policing spending is costly on the backend— $5.5 billion is spent by the US each year on enforcing the restriction of purchases made through SNAP. Cash is simple to understand and simple to administer, leading to savings in the long term.

Trusting mothers to know what their family needs to thrive is much more cost effective and efficient than pre-prescribed spending constraints. Unconditional cash meets every single need, whether its a new stroller, working refrigerator, or a rent payment. Pregnancy and parenthood aren’t “one size fits all”, so the solution must be flexible enough to support millions of unique experiences. Enter, cash.

Direct cash programs are showing incredibly promising results, revolutionizing the way we think about anti-poverty interventions. Whether it’s mental health, birthweight, food security, or prenatal stress, unconditional cash payments are associated with improved outcomes across the board. We don’t have time to waste with mediocre strategies. We’re here to improve infant and maternal outcomes as much as possible, and direct cash is just the thing to do that.