1018 - Health and Wealth With Baby Bonds

Mar 4, 2026

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About this episode:

Baby bonds programs, which create state-managed trust funds for low-income children, are associated with positive physical and mental health outcomes for recipients and their families. New research shows that a majority of Americans support these early wealth-building tools. In this episode: Professor Catherine Ettman talks about the growing excitement behind baby bonds and the state models that have already seen success. Note: The CLIMB study mentioned in this episode is supported by the de Beaumont Foundation and the Hopkins Nexus award.

Guest:

Catherine K. Ettman, PhD, is an assistant professor in Health Policy and Management at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, where she studies population mental health and assets.

Host:

Lindsay Smith Rogers, MA, is the producer of the Public Health On Call podcast, an editor for Expert Insights, and the director of content strategy for the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health.

Show links and related content:

Majority of U.S. Adults Support Wealth-Building Investments for Children from Low-Income Families—Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health
CT Baby Bonds—CT.gov
The Great Smoky Mountains Study: developmental epidemiology in the southeastern United States—Social Psychiatry and Psych
A study in Oklahoma that funded college accounts for newborns is showing promise.—New York Times
Trump Accounts—TrumpAccounts.gov

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