Rx Kids Program; create to provide time-limited assistance to pregnant women during pregnancy and for 12 months after birth.

HB 35 creates a 3-year pilot program in Sunflower and Jones counties to provide cash assistance to pregnant women facing acute economic hardship during pregnancy and for 12 months after birth. It offers $1,500 in prenatal payments (in three $500 installments) and $500 monthly for the infant’s first year, funded through a mix of public (using TANF for Medicaid-covered cases) and private sources. The program ensures these payments are excluded from income calculations for other benefits like Medicaid or SNAP, and requires the University of Mississippi Medical Center (UMMC) to track health outcomes - including prenatal care rates, preterm births, and NICU admissions - over the pilot period. This is a targeted economic support initiative, not a broad policy change.