Michigan's Women, Infants & Children program, providing supplemental nutrition, breastfeeding information, and other resources for healthy mothers & babies.
Information on the Family Independence Program, State Disability Assistance, SSI, Refugee, and other cash assistance.
If you cannot afford child care, payment assistance is available.
Children's Special Health Care Services information and FAQ's.
Information on assistance with home repairs, heat and utility bills, relocation, home ownership, burials, home energy, and eligibility requirements.
Information on the Food Assistance Program, eligibility requirements, and other food resources.
Information about the health care programs available through Medicaid and how to qualify.
Our migrant program works with a number of organizations to provide services for Michigan’s migrant and seasonal farmworkers.
A federal program which helps persons admitted into the U.S. as refugees to become self-sufficient after their arrival.
Universal caseload, or task-based processing, is a different way of handling public assistance cases.
Information on the Children's Protective Services Program, child abuse reporting procedures, and help for parents in caring for their children.
Information on adoption programs, adoption resources, locating birth parents and obtaining information from adoption records.
Information on Adult Protective Services, Independent Living Services, Adult Community Placement Services, and HIV/AIDS Support Services.
Information on child support services for participants and partners.
Programs for healthy children & families, including immunization, lead poisoning prevention, prenatal smoking cessation, and many others.
Information on the Children's Foster Care program and becoming a Foster Parent.
Information about the Michigan law that requires certain information be made available to a woman who is seeking an abortion at least 24 hours prior to the abortion procedure.
Information on treatment and services for juvenile offenders, success stories, and more.
Child Welfare Medical and Behavioral Health Resources
MDHHS and partners support a continuum of prevention services. The continuum is inclusive of primary, secondary, and tertiary prevention activities. Visit this page to learn more.
Information about injury and violence prevention programs in Michigan
Information on Safe Sleep for your baby, how to protect your baby's life.
The Michigan Department of Health and Human Services' (MDHHS) Division of Environmental Health (DEH) uses the best available science to reduce, eliminate, or prevent harm from environmental, chemical, and physical hazards.
Resources and information to assist in assuring firearm safety for families in the state of Michigan.
The Division of Victim Services (DVS) provides a voice advocating for and responding to all victims of crime in Michigan. Learn more about DVS-funded programs and services, including Michigan’s 24/7, free, confidential, and anonymous domestic violence and sexual assault hotlines.
Medical Resources for Child Protection
Serves as liaison and provides funding to Michigan’s 45 local health departments.
Adult Behavioral Health & Developmental Disability Services
Multicultural Health
Prevention of diseases & conditions such as heart disease, cancer, diabetes and many others.
Information on communicable & chronic diseases.
Home to an array of public health programs, initiatives and interventions aimed at improving the health and well-being of women, infants, families and communities.
Birth, Death, Marriage and Divorce Records
Boards and Commissions
Bridge Card Participation Information on Electronic Benefits for clients and businesses, lists of participating retailers and ATMs, and QUEST.
Provider Payments Information on the direct deposit of State of Michigan payments into a provider's bank account.
Information on How to Bid, Requests for Proposals, forms and publications, contractor rates, and manuals.
Information & resources for Community and Faith-Based partners
Information on DHS Applications and Forms grouped by category.
State Health Improvement Plan (SHIP)
Health Care Providers
Licensing information for Adult Foster Care and Homes for the Aged, Child Day Care Facilities, Child Caring Institutions, Children's Foster Care Homes, Child Placing Agencies, Juvenile Court Operated Facilities and Children's or Adult Foster Care Camps.
Michigan Statewide Systems of Care
Information on the grant awarded for the State Innovation Model Proposal
Protect MiFamily -Title IV-E Waiver
Offers resources for agencies who operate the Weatherization Assistance Program in the state of Michigan
Information on resources in your community and volunteer recruitment and training, and services provided at local DHS offices.
Information is collected to monitor the general health and well-being of Michigan citizens.
Equal Opportunity, Legal Base, Laws and Reporting Welfare Fraud information.
A variety of reports & statistics for programs and services.
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To decrease the risk of pregnancy-related complications, attend health care visits before, during and after pregnancy. When seeing a provider, always tell them about any preexisting conditions. Your health care provider can share steps you can take to reduce your maternal health risks.
You should not take the information on this page for medical advice. Talk to your health care provider or visit a clinic near you if you have questions or concerns. Keep reading to learn about risk factors.
What is Diabetes?
Diabetes is a disease that affects how your body turns food into energy. There are three main types of diabetes: type 1, type 2, and gestational diabetes.
With type 1 diabetes, the body doesn’t produce insulin. Insulin is a hormone that helps blood sugar get into the cells to be used for energy.
With type 2 diabetes, the body produces insulin, but does not use it well.
Gestational diabetes is a type of diabetes that develops during pregnancy. (Source: Division of Reproductive Health, National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion)
How can diabetes affect your pregnancy?
For pregnant people with type 1 or type 2 diabetes, high blood sugar around the time of conception increases the risk of birth defects, stillbirth, and preterm birth. Among people with any type of diabetes, high blood sugar throughout pregnancy can also increase the risk of preeclampsia, cesarean delivery, and the baby being born too large. To manage your diabetes, see your health care provider as recommended, monitor your blood sugar levels, follow a good nutrition plan developed with your provider or dietician, be physically active, and take insulin, if directed. Managing diabetes can help you have a healthy pregnancy. If you have diabetes before pregnancy or develop it during pregnancy, it’s important to continue seeing your health care provider after pregnancy to monitor your blood sugar and overall health. (Content Source: Division of Reproductive Health, National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion)
What is an embolism?
An embolism is a blocked artery caused by a foreign body, such as a blood clot or an air bubble.
How can embolisms affect your pregnancy?
Deep Vein Thrombosis and Pulmonary Embolism (DVT/PE) are often underdiagnosed and serious, but preventable medical conditions.
Deep vein thrombosis (DVT) is a medical condition that occurs when a blood clot forms in a deep vein. These clots usually develop in the lower leg, thigh, or pelvis, but they can also occur in the arm.
It is important to know about DVT because it can happen to anybody and can cause serious illness, disability, and in some cases, death. The good news is that DVT is preventable and treatable if discovered early.
While everyone is at risk for developing a blood clot (also called venous thromboembolism or VTE), pregnancy increases that risk fivefold. Learn other interesting facts about blood clots. Recognizing the signs and symptoms of a blood clot is important to protect yourself and your baby during pregnancy and after delivery. Learn the warning signs to watch for during this exciting time. (Content Source: National Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
What is considered a heart condition?
Heart conditions, such as coronary artery disease, heart attack, cardiomyopathy, and congenital heart defects, impact the heart and blood vessels.
How can heart conditions affect your pregnancy?
Not everyone has symptoms, but you may feel neck, jaw, chest, belly, or back pain if you have a heart condition. Many people with heart conditions have healthy, uneventful pregnancies, but pregnancy can put stress on the heart of people with some types of heart conditions.
If you have a heart condition, it’s important to see your health care provider, ideally before pregnancy or as soon as possible after becoming pregnant.
What is Hemorrhage and Postpartum Hemorrhage?
Hemorrhage is a loss of blood from damaged blood vessels. A hemorrhage may be internal or external, and usually involves a lot of bleeding in a short time. (Content Source: National Institute of Health)
Postpartum hemorrhage (also called PPH) is when a woman has heavy bleeding after giving birth. It’s a serious but rare condition. It usually happens within 1 day of giving birth, but it can happen up to 12 weeks after having a baby. Other signs of postpartum hemorrhage are dizziness, feeling faint and blurred vision. About 1 to 5 in 100 women who have a baby (1 to 5 percent) have PPH. If you think you’re having PPH, call your health care provider or 911 immediately. (Content Source: March of Dimes, 2023)
How can PPH affect your pregnancy?
Postpartum hemorrhage is a serious and potentially fatal condition. With PPH, you can lose large amounts of blood very quickly. It causes a sharp decline in blood pressure, which can restrict blood flow to your brain and other organs. This is called shock, and it can lead to death. Postpartum hemorrhage is a medical emergency and needs to be treated right away.
What is high blood pressure (Hypertension)?
High blood pressure (also called hypertension) is a serious health condition that can increase risk during pregnancy. High blood pressure is when the force of your blood pushing against the walls of your blood vessels is consistently too high. High blood pressure can increase the likelihood you or your baby will have health issues. This includes having preeclampsia or eclampsia. Preeclampsia causes high blood pressure during pregnancy. Eclampsia is a life-threatening complication of preeclampsia. Eclampsia occurs when people with preeclampsia develop seizures or experience coma. Preeclampsia and eclampsia usually begin at or after 20 weeks of pregnancy and can cause damage to your kidneys, lungs, heart, eyes, or brain.
Postpartum preeclampsia can occur between 48 hours and six weeks after you give birth. Symptoms usually include:
How can high blood pressure affect your pregnancy?
High blood pressure during pregnancy can increase your short- and long-term risk for high blood pressure, heart disease, and stroke later in life. High blood pressure during pregnancy is the most common risk factor for pregnancy-related stroke. Stroke can happen during pregnancy and the days and weeks after giving birth. More than one half of postpartum strokes will happen within 10 days after discharge following delivery.
If you have severe high blood pressure during your delivery-hospitalization, your health care provider will schedule a follow up visit within three days after you are discharged from the hospital. It is important to attend this appointment and talk with your health care provider about your long-term health risks.
Learn about the signs and symptoms of preeclampsia.
Read about things you can do to help manager your blood pressure before, during and after pregnancy.
Infections can complicate pregnancy and may have serious consequences. (Pregnancy Complications | Maternal and Infant Health | CDC) This includes COVID-19, tuberculosis, HIV, viral hepatitis, sexually transmitted diseases (STDs), Zika virus, flu, and other kinds of infections. You won’t always know if you have an infection, and sometimes you might not even feel sick.
To identify and treat infections, have regular visits with your health care provider during pregnancy and postpartum. Speak with your provider if you feel sick or think you might have been exposed to an infection. To learn more about different infections and how to protect your health, visit the following CDC pages (Pregnancy Complications | Maternal and Infant Health | CDC):
Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) is a public health concern that negatively impacts maternal and infant health.
Abuse can include:
Abuse of any kind is never okay, and abuse during your pregnancy can make your journey very hard and lonely.
An abusive partner can cause emotional pain and/or physical pain. This can result in a miscarriage or vaginal bleeding. When you visit your health care provider for prenatal care, it might be a good time to talk about what is going on in your relationship.
Learn more about violence against women, and find out where to get help.
What are depression and anxiety?
You go through many physical and emotional changes during and after pregnancy. Emotional changes could include depression and anxiety, which are common mood disorders. Depression can make you feel sad and lose interest in activities you normally enjoy. Anxiety can make you feel excessively nervous, worried and scared. These conditions can happen during pregnancy. They can also happen anytime during the first year after your baby is born. If you experience depression during your pregnancy, you are at a greater risk of developing postpartum depression.
Postpartum depression, such as intense feelings of sadness, anxiety, or despair, happens after your baby is born.
It may cause you to:
How can depression and anxiety affect you while you are pregnant or after you give birth?
If you have depression or anxiety, you may have a difficult time bonding with your baby. This can affect how your baby develops. Depression during pregnancy can also cause you to give birth too early. It can interrupt your daily activities and make it hard to care for yourself and your baby. Early treatment is essential for good mental health. Talk to your health care provider if you feel any symptoms of depression or anxiety.
There are many mental health resources available to you and it’s okay to ask for help.
Starting pregnancy at a healthy weight can help reduce the risk of preeclampsia, gestational diabetes, stillbirth, and cesarean delivery. Whatever your body size or shape, you can work with your healthcare provider to plan for a healthy pregnancy. Learn about pregnancy weight gain recommendations and steps to help you meet your pregnancy weight gain goal.
Visit the national Pregnancy for Everybody campaign for more information about planning for a healthy pregnancy.
Using substances during pregnancy can cause serious health problems for you and your baby. Substances like:
Using these substances can increase your risk of:
Substance use may cause your baby to be born too early or have low birthweight. It may also cause your baby to have withdrawal symptoms after birth because of exposure to drugs while you are pregnant. Substance use during pregnancy can affect your baby’s development. It also increases the chances for birth defects, stillbirth, and sudden infant death syndrome.
There is no known “safe” level of alcohol intake for pregnant women. All types of alcohol are equally harmful when you drink while pregnant.
Tobacco, e-cigarettes, and other products containing nicotine are not safe to use during your pregnancy. Quitting smoking is one of the most important ways you can protect your health and the health of your baby.
If you are pregnant or planning to get pregnant – and using any substances including opioids, stimulants, alcohol, tobacco, marijuana, or other drugs – talk to your health care provider. Get more information to make the safest choices for you and your pregnancy.
If you are in need of treatment for substance use treatment services in Michigan, visit: Get Help Now -Behavioral Health (michigan.gov)
Read how substance use can affect you and your baby during pregnancy
Content adapted from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.