The White House is allocating $80 million in federal assistance to help families in Flint deal with their water crisis, U.S. Sen. Debbie Stabenow said in a press release.

"Our children should not have to be worried about the water that they're drinking in American cities. That's not something that we should accept," President Obama said in a meeting Thursday with 250 mayors at the White House.

In those remarks, he referred to the situation in Flint as an "inexcusable situation."

"In last month's bipartisan budget agreement, we secured additional funding to help cities like yours build water infrastructure," Obama told the mayors. "And we're going to have that funding available to you by the end of next week, and that includes more than $80 million for the state of Michigan."

That's considerably more than the $5 million figure announced Saturday, when Obama officially declared the Flint water crisis to be a federal emergency.

The announcement of additional help comes a day after Gov. Rick Snyder urged Obama to upgrade his declaration to a federal disaster, which would free up more funds.

"I want to thank President Obama for quickly responding to our request for federal assistance," Stabenow said in her statement. "While the State of Michigan must take the lead in making things right for Flint families, I am committed to continuing to do everything I can to make sure the maximum amount of federal help is available as quickly as possible."

Flint changed its water source from Lake Huron water purchased from the Detroit water system to the Flint River in April 2014, a decision made while the city was being run by a state-appointed emergency manager.

State regulators never required that the river water be treated to make it less corrosive, causing lead from plumbing and pipes to leach into the water supply.

Even though the city reconnected to the Detroit water system in October, local officials have advised Flint resident not to drink city water unless they are using a lead-clearing filter.

Research from Hurley Dr. Mona Hanna-Attisha detailed the rise in blood lead levels in children who drank Flint River water for as long as 17 months.

Snyder unveiled a $28 million plan Tuesday night during his State of the State address to combat the city's water crisis. The plan allocates state funding to six departments and would enable the state to increase National Guard efforts, increase nurses in schools and replace fixtures in some public places.

Obama met with Flint Mayor Karen Weaver on Tuesday to discuss the city's water crisis.

Julie Mack is a reporter for MLive.com. Email her at jmack1@mlive.com, call her at 269-350-0277 or follow her on Twitter @kzjuliemack.