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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Michigan has childcare and early childhood education programs for children that are high quality, and low-cost or free, licensed programs.
Michigan’s Child Development and Care
Michigan's Child Development and Care program provides supplemental childcare payments allowing low-income parents to work. The funds can be used for regulated childcare in a licensed center, group childcare home, family child care home, or license-exempt care in the home of a relative or by an adult in the child's home.
Head Start
Head Start is a free federal program for children ages 3 to 5 years serving low-income families. The program promotes child school readiness, while also giving support to their families. Head Start provides enrolled children and families with a wide range of high-quality education, health, nutrition, and social services.
Michigan's Great Start Readiness Program (GSRP)
Michigan's Great Start Readiness Program (GSRP) is a free state-funded preschool program serving at-risk and low-income four-year-olds. The program gives access to preschool for children who do not qualify for Head Start or those without access to preschool, because there are not enough available Head Start slots.
Early Head Start
Early Head Start is a free federal program that provides support to low-income families of infants and toddlers under the age of three and pregnant women. The program provides a wide range of high-quality education, health, nutrition, family support, and social services to enrolled infants and toddlers, pregnant women and their families.
You may qualify for Michigan's Child Development and Care program if you need childcare while you are actively involved in employment, an approved activity, education, employment training (such as a trade certificate or training program), English as a second language class, or
participating in an approved counseling or treatment program for a physical, emotional, or mental condition. For most families, the department pays less than the full cost of childcare. Families are expected to pay the difference between the subsidy payment and the provider's actual charge.
To apply for assistance with childcare payments through the Child Development and Care program listed above please visit MI Bridges. See the chapter on the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services for more information on MI Bridges.
To access Great Start Readiness or to speak with a staff member who can help you find childcare that fits your budget and schedule, call: 877-614-7328
Early On is Michigan's system for helping infants and toddlers birth to age three and their families who have developmental delays or are at risk for delays due to certain health conditions. It is designed to help families find the social, health, and educational services that will promote the development of their infants and toddlers with special needs. Research has shown that by addressing delays early on - especially between birth and age three - we can more effectively impact a child's development, even into adulthood.
Am I Eligible?
For children from birth to three years of age. If you are worried that your child "seems behind" compared to other children of the same age, contact Early On. Sometimes families start by asking a doctor, nurse, or a childcare provider for an opinion.
How Do I Get Help?
Visit Early On, or call 800-327-5966,
Child Find requires school districts to have a process for identifying and evaluating children who may need special education and related services, such as counseling or speech therapy. Even infants and toddlers can be evaluated. They could then receive help for learning disabilities and developmental delays through early intervention programs. These programs help parents find out if their young children are on track. Then, if needed, the programs can connect families with appropriate services early in the child’s life.
Am I Eligible?
Every child from birth through age 21 is eligible to be evaluated by their school district if a parent or school suspects a child may have a disability.
Find the contact information for your local Child Find coordinator or reach out to your local school district.
Your child is eligible for special education if they have a disability and need additional services to benefit from a general education program at a public school. An Individualized Education Program (IEP) will be created for your child. An IEP is a written document that talks about your child’s current strengths, needs, and goals for the year.
The IEP is developed through the input of a team of people, including the parents, the student, teachers, and other people that know the child and are invited by the family or the school. This team will also decide how to put the IEP into action. The IEP is reviewed at least once per year but you can ask for a meeting to change the IEP if you feel like the plan is no longer working.
To look up licensing inspection reports for child care centers on LARA (MI Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs) and see if there have been any violations, etc. and how the site addressed them, visit: https://childcaresearch.apps.lara.state.mi.us/
DRM provides advocacy services and lawyers advise individuals with disabilities of their rights and responsibilities for their human, civil, and legal rights within the state of Michigan DRM has broad authority to monitor institutions, such as school districts, and advocate for people with disabilities.
Find more information.
The Early Childhood Investment Corporation (ECIC) promotes, leverages resources, and stewards investments in effective and sustainable early childhood work. We promote and steward investments in effective and sustainable early childhood work so that all children are prepared to thrive.
Early Childhood Investment Corporation
A statewide resource to connect families of children with disabilities to resources to help improve their children’s education. They help facilitate parent involvement as a means of improving educational services and outcomes for students with disabilities.
Visit Michigan Alliance for Families, or call 800-552-482.
Federal and state funding for early childhood services is available through a complex maze of funding streams and government agencies. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) provides grants to local, public, and private non-profit and for-profit agencies through the Head Start and Early Head Start programs to provide early learning services to children in low income families. These programs have the overall goal of increasing the school readiness of young children from low-income families. For more information on funding please visit:
Child Care Technical Assistance Network-CCDF Funding Overview