Hi Jennifer — thank you for your support of our U.S. poverty programs. Sharing the latest stories and updates from our U.S. work:

Skylyn, a 26-year-old stay-at-home mom with two kids, was hit hard by the Texas floods in July:

“When the flooding started, it was very chaotic, very scary. I almost got swept under the house, but thankfully, my boyfriend James grabbed me. Our truck was partially submerged in the floodwaters, but thankfully we were able to recover it and it was still running, so we went to a hotel that night. But we had to pay out of pocket, and we barely had any money. That was really tough.”

“While I was inside getting the last of our things, the support beams under the house were washed out and hit by debris. We thought we were going to lose everything. It was terrifying thinking about having to replace all of it— our documents, clothes, baby formula, everything.”

“We sustained major property damage. There was just debris everywhere, and broken glass all over the yard that we’re still trying to clean up to make it safe for the baby. Our neighbors’ houses were swept away, and we had debris like couches and mattresses scattered everywhere.”

Skylyn received $2,400, no strings attached, to help her family recover after the floods.

“GiveDirectly gives you a great amount, first of all. Not just $100, but $2,400. Which is a major help because that can do a lot, even replacing a car if needed. And most importantly, the money goes directly to the recipient, with no middleman pocketing some of it, like some other nonprofits.”

“We haven’t had any help out here, from Williamson County, the state, or even FEMA. We’ve been completely forgotten, with no assistance from officials. It took me two months of begging just to get a dumpster for debris removal. The debris was causing all kinds of problems — snakes and other pests were hiding in it, making our property even more unsafe.”

“That support was amazing. It covered our hotel stay while we were displaced for three to four weeks. When this happened, we only had $200 to our name, and our bank account was going negative just to have somewhere safe for the baby. It also helped us buy food and clothes and replace lost baby formula.”

“Whenever you get money, like actual money instead of gift cards or services, it makes a huge difference. With cash, you can handle the things people don’t always think about—like paying a phone bill so you can stay in contact, or renting a car if yours was submerged. This support was amazing. It's the best help that we've received so far.”

Hear directly from Skylyn about the impact cash had for her family:

New research: Cash for pregnant moms in Flint led to healthier births and millions in healthcare savings

• 💸 A population-wide study in Flint found that unconditional cash from GiveDirectly’s Rx Kids program ($1,500 during pregnancy and $500 a month after birth) cut preterm births by up to 18% and low birthweight births by up to 27%.
  
  
• 🏥 The program prevented ~42 preterm births, ~68 NICU admissions, and ~65 low-weight births, saving up to $6.2 million in healthcare costs.
  
  
• 🏠 Cash gave moms stability – evictions were nearly eliminated, food access improved, and postpartum depression fell.
  
  
• 📍 Rx Kids has now expanded to 11 Michigan communities, proving that universal cash for moms and babies works at scale and can be replicated anywhere through public–private partnerships with TANF funds.

Cash helped moms receive more care and skip harmful habits:

Giving cash to moms in Kenya also cut infant deaths in half — see how:

Updates from our team

• From proven to fit-for-purpose: what we’re doing next with cash: Discover how GiveDirectly is evolving our cash programs to hit our goal to deliver $5 billion by 2035 through smarter, faster, and more impactful solutions that put recipients first.
  
  
• Report: risks we faced delivering cash in 2024: As part of our commitment to survivor-centered, transparent reporting, we’re sharing a public summary of fraud, abuse, and safety incidents at GiveDirectly in 2024 and what we’re changing.

Your impact in the press

[6 min read] GiveDirectly was featured in an American Inequality article highlighting how unconditional cash transfers are transforming disaster response in the U.S. “What is needed is a model of delivering aid that is nimble enough to respond efficiently to increasingly frequent disasters, and provides assistance regardless of someone’s ability to navigate bureaucracy or tell a compelling story.”

[5 min read] The New York Times highlighted the latest research showing that $1,000 cash transfers cut infant deaths in half. “This is easily the biggest impact on child survival that I’ve seen from an intervention that was designed to alleviate poverty,” said an economist not involved in the study.

P.S. Check out our redesigned GDLive website to explore the latest stories and payments:

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