National infant mortality studies conducted by Wayne State University and the University of Michigan show improvements in the number of black babies who die in their first year of life. A promising national program that pairs nurses with low-income moms has expanded to Michigan cities such as Pontiac and Detroit, where black infant deaths far exceed white infant deaths. Wayne State secured a 10-year, $125 million contract with the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development in 2002 to support maternal and infant health activities at the Perinatology Research Branch on the Detroit Medical Center campus.