The next Prevention Research Center for Healthy Neighborhoods (PRCHN) will host a discussion on the Philly Joy Bank during its next virtual seminar Wednesday, May 8, at noon.
The Philly Joy Bank (PJB) is a community-designed pilot program created by the stakeholders of the Philadelphia Community Action Network and the Philadelphia Department of Public Health to address the large racial and socioeconomic disparities in infant prematurity and mortality in Philadelphia. The PJB consists of $1,000 of monthly guaranteed income, defined as regular cash payments with no strings attached and no work requirements. Pregnant individuals who are eligible for the PJB will receive 18 of these payments monthly, starting in the second trimester and lasting up to 12 months postpartum. By providing unconditional, unrestricted cash, the PJB centers the dignity, power and autonomy of participants to use the money as they see fit.
Elizabeth Valdez and Ali Groves from Drexel University Dornsife School of Public Health will give a presentation titled “Examining the Impact of the Philly Joy Bank: A Mixed Methods Evaluation of a Community-Designed Pilot Program.” The researchers are conducting a mixed-methods evaluation to assess the feasibility and acceptability of the PJB. They aim to examine whether the PJB reduces parental stress and increases their ability to meet basic needs among those who receive the PJB, and to assess the preliminary impacts of the PJB on infant birth outcomes and depression.