May 28, 2020
As the country heads into its third month of sheltering in place and states gradually reopen, a key question is looming large in the minds of parents, economists and elected officials alike: Who will care for the children when parents are called back to work? Unlike the public school system, the child care “system” is mostly private, with the majority of providers operating on razor-thin margins, meaning any impact to their revenue could force permanent closure. And if child care becomes a scarce commodity, families will be forced to forego work to care for kids, which could hamper economic recovery.
In March, as states closed K-12 schools in response to the pandemic, many states, including California, chose to allow child care providers to remain open, despite CDC guidelines to the contrary. California Gov. Gavin Newsom rightly said that child care access was a key component in allowing essential workers to continue to go to work. What followed, however, was a tumultuous period of questions and challenging decisions, ultimately leading to the shuttering of more than half of the providers in the state.
The initial challenge was about safety: parents worried about the well-being of their kids in child care environments while caregivers also questioned the safety of staying open. In an op-ed for The Hill, thought leaders from the Center for the Study of Child Care Employment at UC Berkeley questioned the wisdom of allowing child care to stay open and putting providers at risk, pointing out that “babies don’t do social distancing.” While interim safety guidelines had been issued, much was (and still is) unknown about the virus, making staying open frightening. When looking at the dollars and cents, however, many providers chose to remain open to financially support themselves and their staff.
As time went on, though, a mix of decisions led to a wave of partial or permanent closures. Parents working from home or who had been laid off chose to keep their children at home, causing an immediate drop in revenue for providers. Unwilling to risk virus exposure, some providers chose to close. Other providers continued to support families remotely and charged families for care in the hopes they would be able to reopen. Still other providers tried staying open but, with no access to critical supplies like diapers and cleaning supplies, had to close.
Meanwhile, elected officials and early childhood advocates were sounding alarms. Child care proponent Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), along with other elected officials, penned an op-ed for the Boston Globe that pushed for relief for the industry in the CARES Act, the massive $2.2 trillion federal relief package that was still being debated at that time. The child care industry itself also pushed for $50 billion in relief, predicting that without federal intervention, the industry would collapse. The CARES Act, passed on March 27, did include crucial provisions for child care, but woefully short of the $50 billion needed.
Shortly after the passage of the CARES Act, California announced a new development for the state’s child care industry: subsidized child care for essential workers. Newsom committed resources to provide state-funded child care — usually reserved for low-income families — for those considered essential workers, and gave new guidance to providers on how to prioritize those families. Furthering the commitment, Los Angeles City Mayor Eric Garcetti expanded local child care resources by giving hospital workers additional financial support and options.
The state and city commitments brought some help to centers with unclear futures. Southern California-based early childhood reporter Mariana Dale followed the stories of several providers who reopened to care for the children of essential workers. She also, however, detailed how new safety guidelines are proving challenging, not just in terms of enforcement with small children, but the reduced number of children able to be seen, and increased costs associated with mandated safety guidelines. To provide care safely, providers must now employ a range of cleaning practices, social distancing procedures, and a host of precautions before children enter the facility, including temperature checks.
The future of the industry is still unclear. As of April 23, 66% of L.A. County’s licensed preschools and child care centers had closed, reports Dale. And while the majority of family care providers are still open, enrollment has dropped considerably. So, will providers be able to reopen as the economy reopens? Most say not without more government intervention, which is unlikely to happen. In his revised budget, Newsom included a $1 billion cut to the early childhood program funding proposed in January. And while the HEROES Act, which recently passed in the House and is now pending approval from the Senate, has earmarked $7 billion for child care, advocates say it would still not be enough to stabilize the system.
California is still in the beginning stages of reopening its economy as of this writing, so the question of who will watch the children has yet to force most parents into the impossible choice of paying the bills or caring for kids. The anticipation is significant, with some speculating that women will bear the brunt of the child care duties, setting back the progress of women in the workplace. The situation will also inadvertently punish people with families, further driving down the birthrate. Ultimately, parents power the economy, but without child care, they will not be able to return to work.
To help stay well-informed on the challenges and opportunities facing child care providers, we have compiled several articles in this issue for our readers.
- Open/Closed
- Fragile Systems
- Economic Recovery
- Child Care for Essential Workers
- Rally by Child Care Industry
- Federal Legislation
- California State Budget/Efforts
- Opinion Pieces
Open/Closed
New America: As Closures Continue, Child Care Providers and Early Educators Struggle
As an increasing number of states across the country decide to close K-12 schools indefinitely in response to the coronavirus outbreak, it has become clear in recent days that child care providers are also facing an uncertain future. (Loewenberg, 3/20/20)
LAist: Dear LAist: Will My Child’s Day Care Center Or Preschool Close?
Ever since schools were closed in response to the coronavirus outbreak, parents have been reaching out to LAist with a pressing question: will my child’s day care center or preschool close, too? (Dale, 3/18/20)
CalMatters: As coronavirus upends California, question remains: Who’ll watch the kids?
As schools, businesses, governments and most other venues go dark in the effort to restrict the pandemic, state officials are allowing child care centers to remain open, in an effort to support essential workers who can’t leave their children otherwise. (Aguilera, 3/21/20)
CBS Sacramento: Coronavirus Outbreak: Why Are Preschools Still Open?
Amid the stay-at-home order, there has been a lot of confusion and concern about preschools and childcare facilities that remain open. (Watts, 3/20/20)
The Washington Post: Early-childhood expert: Why child-care centers should be closed during the coronavirus crisis
The vast majority of schools in the United States are closed in an effort to curb the spread of the deadly novel coronavirus, but there are child-care centers that have stayed open — and one expert is calling for them to close. (Strauss, 3/24/20)
EdSource: Parents, teachers struggle as child care centers close in California
Thousands of preschool and child care programs remain open across California even as the number of children attending continues to drop amid fears of spreading the coronavirus. (Stavely 3/24/20)
Los Angeles Times: Child-care providers need supplies, coronavirus guidance as day-care system suffers
California’s early childhood care system has long been held together by women such as Tanya García, whose Hollywood duplex is home to two licensed day-care operations serving as many as 28 youngsters — among them the children of healthcare workers and public school teachers. (Sharp, 3/26/20)
MarketPlace: Do parents still pay when daycare is closed for weeks, or months, because of COVID-19?
“I feel like it’s one of so many ethical questions around money that has come up for me,” said Gard, a single mom in suburban Philadelphia whose son, Julian, is 4. (Fields, 3/30/20)
Fast Company: The coronavirus crisis is hitting childcare workers especially hard
As families try to limit their exposure to coronavirus, the childcare industry is becoming collateral damage. Five daycare workers and nannies share how they’re making ends meet. (Mohan, 3/30/20)
Bloomberg: Child Care Centers Shut by Virus Foreshadow Lasting Economic Woe
As the number of U.S. Covid-19 cases climbed this month, Pine Village Preschool shuttered all 10 of its locations in the Boston area and furloughed almost all of its roughly 125 employees. (Reyes, 3/30/20)
NPR: ‘Essential’ Child Care Workers Struggle To Balance Family Needs, Safety
Child care providers around the country have been hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic, with many facing closure even as others struggle to stay open. (Dale, 3/31/20)
First Five Years Fund: Bipartisan Lawmakers Prioritize Child Care Amidst COVID-19 Pandemic Response
Lawmakers have been working around the clock to provide relief to America’s families, small businesses, and major industries as they struggle with the effects of the COVID-19 crisis. (Danley, 3/27/20)
The Washington Post: Keeping a child-care center open amid coronavirus
This has been one of the toughest times I have experienced in my 14 years of owning and operating an early-learning center. My accredited center serves 150 students aged 6 weeks to 12 years old. (Jost, 4/3/20)
The New York Times: What to Do if Your Day Care Is Still Open
And what to do if it isn’t. (For starters: Pay them if you can, but don’t fret if you can’t.) (Sohn, 4/3/20)
The New York Times: What to Do if Your Day Care Is Still Open
And what to do if it isn’t. (For starters: Pay them if you can, but don’t fret if you can’t.) (Sohn, 4/3/20)
Vox: “We are on our own”: How the coronavirus pandemic is hurting child care workers
Many providers could go out of business — permanently. (North, 4/4/20)
EdSource: Child care in a locked down world
A recent television news headline asked, “Can day cares stay open amid coronavirus outbreak?” The answer — yes — has confused many. It shouldn’t. (Dumars, 4/5/20)
San Francisco Chronicle: A working parent’s shelter-in-place quandary: Keep paying for childcare you can’t use?
Like many working parents, Bethany Hendrickson O’Connell found a bit of novelty in the first week of sheltering in place. (Swan, 4/5/20)
The Daily News: With schools and daycare centers shut, childcare providers warn of influx if workplaces reopen
‘People are starting to calm down a little bit and more kids are coming,’ said director of the LA Child Development Consortium Lisa Wilkin. (Plachta, 4/20/20)
NPR: California Urges Day Care Centers To Stay Open During Pandemic
Some states are urging child care centers to stay open to keep essential workers on the job. But providers say they’re not trained to keep everyone safe and there’s no social distancing with toddlers. (Dale, 4/21/20)
First Five Years Fund: Half of America’s Child Care Providers Are Closed, According to New NAEYC Survey
The National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) released the findings of a new survey of more than 5,000 child care providers across the country, which paints a bleak picture of the impact the COVID-19 crisis is having on the businesses and providers who care for our nation’s children. (Uhing, 4/21/20)
NPR: California Urges Day Care Centers To Stay Open During Pandemic
Some states are urging child care centers to stay open to keep essential workers on the job. But providers say they’re not trained to keep everyone safe and there’s no social distancing with toddlers. (Dale, 4/21/20)
First Five Years Fund: Half of America’s Child Care Providers Are Closed, According to New NAEYC Survey
The National Association for the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) released the findings of a new survey of more than 5,000 child care providers across the country, which paints a bleak picture of the impact the COVID-19 crisis is having on the businesses and providers who care for our nation’s children. (Uhing, 4/21/20)
Fatherly: Why Daycares Will Open Slowly After the Pandemic
One of the most important industries might struggle to re-open. (Francis, 4/21/20)
Futurity: How to make emergency childcare safer during COVID-19
New recommendations outline specific measures for safer emergency childcare during the COVID-19 pandemic. (Crowley, 4/21/20)
ABC7: Coronavirus Impact: Home-based childcare programs searching for answers during shelter-in-place
Working from her dining room table Heidi Seretan greets her students on her laptop, “Hey Stephen!” (Melendez, 5/1/20)
The New York Times: When Can Child Care Resume?
The answer will depend on location, the age and health of caretakers, and everyone’s levels of acceptable risk. (Sohn, 5/4/20)
LAist: Masks, Smaller Classes And No Hugs: What Child Care Looks Like Right Now
What will child care look like in the age of social distancing? Recently reopened child care centers in Long Beach might have the answer. (Dale, 5/6/20)
ABC 7: LA day care centers give glimpse of what classrooms could look like after schools reopen
Temperature checks, hand washing and learning to physically distance are measures implemented at some L.A. day care centers. (Lara, 5/6/20)
Fragile Systems
Motherly: The child care industry was already a broken system—but this pandemic is exposing even more cracks
The COVID-19 pandemic has quickly laid bare some important truths: Children love video-conferencing with each other. (Haspel, 3/25/20)
The Hechinger Report: Our fragile child care ‘system’ may be about to shatter
Child care programs across the country are ‘afraid to stay open and afraid to close,’ caught between fear of the coronavirus and fear of financial ruin. (Mongeau, 4/5/20)
The Hechinger Report: Her daycare center was already on the brink — then coronavirus struck
The child care system is failing the very workers it relies on. And it’s about to get worse. (Mader, 4/5/20)
USA Today: Her daycare was already on the brink. Then coronavirus struck.
It was still dark outside when several children started grabbing puzzles and toy cars off the shelves of Shemonica Flemings’ daycare center. (Mader, 4/11/20)
WBUR: The Early Child Care System Is On The Brink Of Collapse, Advocates Warn
The early child care system is on the brink of collapse with many advocates worried it won’t be able to survive the coronavirus pandemic. (4/21/20)
Education Dive: Report: State preschool programs at risk of ‘long-term damage’
Last year saw small increases in pre-K spending, enrollment and quality, but the authors say bipartisan action is needed to protect programs from another recession. (Jacobson, 4/22/20)
The Center for American Progress: Coronavirus Pandemic Could Lead to Permanent Loss of Nearly 4.5 Million Child Care Slots
The response to the novel coronavirus, which causes the disease COVID-19, has shuttered businesses across the country. Child care providers are no exception. (Jessen-Howard & Workman, 4/24/20)
Pew Stateline: Will Child Care Be There When States Reopen?
Child care centers, home daycares and after-school programs nationwide are struggling to stay open as families stay home to avoid spreading the coronavirus. (Quinton, 4/27/20)
Huffington Post: The Child Care Industry Is About To Collapse. There’s No Bailout Coming.
It would cost $9.6 billion a month to keep things going, and Congress is offering a fraction of that. (Peck, 5/15/20)
The New York Times: Your Day Care Probably Won’t Survive the Coronavirus
We’ve long failed to fund the child care sector like the public good that it is. Now it’s on the brink of collapse. (Kennedy & Mayshak, 5/20/20)
Economic Recovery
Huffington Post: You Can’t Reopen The Economy Without Child Care
As coronavirus lockdowns ease up, parents must choose between child care and work. Policymakers don’t get it. (Peck, 5/4/20)
San Francisco Chronicle: What does feminism look like without child care? It’s not pretty
I was bone tired. The first week of sheltering in place had been a blur of logging into school Zoom meetings, slapping together turkey sandwiches, unloading the dishwasher, taking my kids on long walks so we didn’t all turn on each other, and cooking dinner — sometimes (it felt) all at the same time. (Nordberg, 5/1/20)
The Washington Post: Without child care, the economy won’t restart
Child care has traditionally been a “soft issue,” a “woman’s issue” and an issue ignored whenever possible by conservatives, some of whom are queasy about working mothers. (Rubin, 5/3/20)
CNN Business: The economy can’t recover until parents have child care again
Governors, mayors and President Trump are eager for the US economy to reopen. But child care — or lack thereof — could be the X factor to determine when that will happen. (Tappe, 5/2/20)
Business Insider: The pandemic is set to shutter 30% of US childcare centers — and it could prove catastrophic for the careers of American women
In the wake of the coronavirus pandemic, many childcare centers and schools have closed their doors, forcing parents to teach and care for their kids while also juggling work. (Ward, 5/4/20)
MSNBC: Need for childcare presents hurdle to restarting economy
Andrea Mitchell is joined by Mark Shriver, President of Save the Children Action Network, and Lynette Fraga, Executive Director of Child Care Aware of America, to talk about how the availability of childcare services is essential for parents with children to be able to return to work as many schools remain closed and childcare providers remain unavailable. (Mitchell, 5/7/20)
CNBC: Kids can’t be an ‘afterthought’: Some states are reopening without lifting child-care restrictions
“If they were looking for people to lay off, they would be looking for people who haven’t been as productive — and that would be parents,” Herrmann-Nowosielski says. (Leonhardt, 5/8/20)
CNBC: Affordable child care is increasingly difficult to find in the U.S.—coronavirus could make it harder
During the first few weeks of the coronavirus pandemic, Laurie Fletcher would catch herself waking up in the middle of the night to wash her hands. (Leonhardt, 5/15/20)
The Hill: Working parents could face lack of child care as the economy restarts
As several governors start to reopen their states across the country, more mothers and fathers will begin to return to the work. But will parents with young children have access to child care? (Cisneros, 5/15/20)
USA Today: Coronavirus child care crisis tops concerns as nation pushes to reopen. Parents ask: Who will watch our children?
Carlos Atkins, 27, used to spend weekdays with his 2-year-old son Malachi, taking walks and reading books, before heading out into the night to power wash sidewalks, pick up trash and remove graffiti in downtown Detroit for a local nonprofit. (Guynn, 5/17/20)
The Washington Post: The pandemic upended child care. It could be devastating for working women.
Evie Ebert and her husband are in survival mode when it comes to juggling working from home with caring for their 4- and 1-year-old children. (Becker, 5/20/20)
WAMU: The Pandemic’s Child Care Problem
Parents are expected to get back to work — and they want to — but how can they do it without the child care they rely on? Can an economy fully recover without robust child care? (Botts, 5/20/20)
Bloomberg: State Reopening Plans Collide With Shuttered Child-Care Centers
Without day care, people—mostly women—can’t get back to work. (Moore & Banjo, 5/22/20)
Reports:
CLASP: Child Care is Key to Our Economic Recovery
This brief provides new estimates of what it would cost to sustain the child care system during the coronavirus pandemic. (Ullrich & Schmit & Robbins, 4/23/20)
Child Care for Essential Workers
The New York Times: States Scramble to Arrange Child Care for Essential Workers
A nurse and a single mother, Becca Rosselli had a choice to make when her daughter’s school and care programs closed for the coronavirus outbreak. (AP, 3/29/20)
The Long Beach Post: Long Beach wants to match out-of-work child care professionals with families who need them
With schools closed because of COVID-19, first-responders, grocery store employees and other essential workers have few places to put their kids. In response, Long Beach is promoting a website meant to match families in need with workers who can provide them in-home child care. (Osier, 4/1/20)
LAist: Governor Approves Child Care Aid For Essential Workers
Gov. Gavin Newsom has signed an executive order that allows the departments of Education and Social Services to approve child care and after-school programs for children of health care professionals, emergency responders, law enforcement and grocery workers. (4/5/20)
Also featured in The San Francisco Chronicle (Whiting, 4/5/20)
CalMatters: California eases child care regulations for critical workers
While some details are still to come, the governor’s executive order could deliver some much-needed relief to essential workers straining to balance their jobs and children. (Aguilera, 4/6/20)
EdSource: Essential workers now eligible for subsidized child care in California
Nurses, doctors, grocery store workers, police and other essential workers now have access to subsidized child care in California, regardless of their income. (Stavely, 4/6/20)
CBS Los Angeles: Child Care Centers Face Struggles As They Stay Open For Children Of Essential Workers Amid Coronavirus Shutdowns
Daycare workers providing crucial care for children of essential workers during the coronavirus crisis have faced struggles while keeping children safe with less staff than usual. (4/7/20)
LAist: California Child Care Providers Can Prioritize Essential Workers
California is expanding its subsidized child care program to include more children of essential workers who can’t work remotely. (Dale, 4/10/20)
The Orange County Register: CalFLEXI connects essential workers to childcare amid coronavirus shutdown
The coronavirus pandemic has created a host of challenges for workers in Southern California, and one of the biggest is childcare. (Smith, 4/10/20)
CBS Los Angeles: Help Available For Healthcare Workers In Need Of Child Care
In his Friday briefing, Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti announced a new initiative to support all hospital workers and their families to ensure that no essential worker has to miss a shift due to a lack of child care. (Katague, 4/10/20)
LAist: LA And California Expand Childcare Options For Essential Workers
Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti announced new resources Friday for hospital workers who need child care. (Dale, 4/11/20)
KTLA: Gov. Newsom directing $100 million for child care services for essential workers
Gov. Gavin Newsom is releasing $100 million to support child care services for California’s essential workers and at-risk children as the coronavirus pandemic leaves schools closed through the end of the academic year, his office announced Friday. (Salahieh, 4/11/20)
New America: Caring for Children of Healthcare Workers
When Kidango, a large preschool and child care provider in the Bay Area, reopened centers to serve the children of health care workers and first responders on the frontlines of the COVID-19 pandemic, Chief Executive Officer Scott Moore told his staff they were going to be needed. (Jackson, 4/15/20)
CAP Radio: New Rules Make Child Care More Accessible For Essential Employees, But Some Parents Still Take Kids To Work
A new set of California state guidelines for accessibility to day cares means some people who are relying on friends and neighbors to watch their children might have a different option. (Moffitt, 4/15/20)
EdSurge: When Essential Workers Need Child Care, Child Care Becomes Essential
Across the country, in virtually every city and state, businesses have shut their doors and sent workers home, awaiting word on when it’s safe to reopen. The same is true for schools and colleges, most of which have been closed since March. (Tate, 4/22/20)
MSN: First responders’ needs mean tough choices for child-care providers
As the COVID-19 virus reaches into all corners of the United States, child-care workers are being asked to step up. (Simonton, 4/23/20)
ABC 10: We are the invisible essential worker’ | Sacramento area childcare providers struggle to find options
Elk Grove care provider and early educator Pat Alexander went from thirteen to three children in her care in matter of weeks. (Solomon, 4/28/20)
LAist: More Than Half Of LA Child Care Centers Closed. Who Is Watching The Kids Of Essential Workers?
As of April 23, 66% of L.A. County’s licensed preschools and child care centers had closed, according to the state’s department of social services. (Dale, 4/29/20)
Motherly: Essential workers need childcare, so grandparents are filling the gap
America is in the middle of a pandemic but it is also in the middle of an unprecedented childcare crisis. With schools and day cares closed and babysitters, nannies and grandparents out of reach parents are overworked and overwhelmed. (Davis, 4/29/20)
Rally by Child Care Providers
EdSource: California child care providers call for emergency support amid coronavirus pandemic
As schools and businesses close across California to try to stop the spread of the coronavirus, child care providers are calling on Gov. Gavin Newsom to provide emergency support to stay in business during the coronavirus pandemic. (Stavely, 3/18/20)
CPR: Child Care Advocates Ask Feds For Help: ‘We’re The Frontline For The Economy’
Colorado advocates say if the early child care sector doesn’t get a massive investment of federal funds, the providers face a near-total collapse during the deepening coronavirus crisis. (Brudin, 3/20/20)
First Five Years Fund: Congress Receives 60,000 Emails from FFYF Supporters Urging Relief for Child Care Industry
Last week, FFYF and our partners provided detailed recommendations to lawmakers with options for how best to support the child care industry during – and after this time of unprecedented uncertainty and disruption to business. (Joughin, 3/22/20)
The Hill: Child care industry requests $50 billion in relief
The child care industry is calling on Congress to include $50 billion in relief in its stimulus package to keep the sector afloat after the coronavirus pandemic has drastically impacted daily attendance at facilities. (Gangitano, 3/23/20)
LAist: Already On The Margins, Child Care Providers Look For Coronavirus Relief
Child care providers around the state are closing as parents whose jobs are deemed “non-essential” have been told to stay home with their kids to stop the spread of coronavirus. (Dale, 3/24/20)
First Five Years Fund: Letter to Congress Requesting Dedicated Relief for Child Care in COVID-19 Recovery Package
This week, FFYF and a group of the nation’s leading early childhood, business, and community advocacy organizations wrote to Congress urging lawmakers to include dedicated relief for child care in the upcoming COVID-19 recovery package. (Joughin, 5/8/20)
Federal Legislation
ABC News: Trump signs coronavirus relief measure ensuring paid sick, emergency leave
The Senate will vote on the House-passed economic relief bill on Wednesday. (Khan, 3/18/20)
Also featured in The Hill (Chalfant, 3/18/20), The Wall Street Journal (Duehren, 3/18/20)
BuzzFeed: Congress Passed A Major Coronavirus Aid Bill And Is Already Working On Another
Once signed into law by Trump, the over $100 billion bill will provide some sick leave, childcare leave, and a variety of other measures. But negotiations over a much larger bill to save the economy have just begun. (McLeod, 3/18/20)
The New York Times: Coronavirus Live Updates: Senate Moves Toward Passing Sweeping $2 Trillion Aid Deal
People fleeing New York to other parts of the country were told to quarantine themselves for 14 days. Prince Charles has the virus. The number of deaths in Spain — more than 3,400 — surpassed the toll in China. (Peltz, 3/24/20)
Also featured in Vox (Nilsen & Zhou, 3/24/20), ABC News (Cathey, 3/24/20), NBC News (Peltz, 3/24/20)
Motherly: The child care industry was already a broken system—but this pandemic is exposing even more cracks
The COVID-19 pandemic has quickly laid bare some important truths: Children love video-conferencing with each other. (Haspel, 3/25/20)
First Five Years Fund: BREAKING: Congress Includes Crucial Relief for Child Care Industry in COVID-19 Stimulus Package
Late Wednesday night, the Senate passed a sweeping economic stimulus bill to provide relief to America’s families, small businesses, and major industries as they struggle with the effects of the COVID-19 crisis. (Uhing, 3/26/20)
First Five Years Fund: Bipartisan Lawmakers Prioritize Child Care Amidst COVID-19 Pandemic Response
Lawmakers have been working around the clock to provide relief to America’s families, small businesses, and major industries as they struggle with the effects of the COVID-19 crisis. (Danley, 3/27/20)
Sierra Sun Times: During the COVID-19 Pandemic U.S. Senator Kamala D. Harris and Colleagues Urge Administration to Address Child Care Needs of Frontline Workers
Senator Kamala D. Harris (D-CA) on Tuesday joined Senator Maggie Hassan (D-NH) and 20 of their colleagues in urging the Office of Child Care at the Department of Health and Human Services to take additional steps to expand child care options for health care workers and others on the frontlines responding to the COVID-19 pandemic, as well as provide critical guidance to child care providers to ensure that they are taking appropriate action to minimize the risk of spreading COVID-19 at centers that remain open. (4/1/20)
First Five Years Fund: Here’s an Overview of Child Care Relief Included in the CARES Act
In addition to the proven benefits to a child’s learning and healthy development, quality child care is an essential pillar of America’s labor market and economy, allowing millions of parents to go to work or attend school each day. (4/2/2020)
New America: Small Business Loans May Help, But More Assistance is Needed for Child Care Providers
More help from the federal government is needed to ensure the survival of providers in the long-term. (Loewnberg, 4/13/20)
First Five Years Fund: States to Begin Receiving Additional CCDBG Funds for COVID-19 Relief
Today, the Administration for Children and Families (ACF) announced it will release additional Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG) funds to states. (Mendoza, 4/14/20)
The Hill: Warren, Smith call for $50B to rescue child care centers amid drop in attendance
Sens. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) and Tina Smith (D-Minn.) are calling for Congress to spend $50 billion to support child care providers who have seen enrollments drop and cleaning costs increase as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. (Bolton, 4/15/20)
First Five Years Fund: Child Care & COVID-19: Emergency Relief Funding to States for Education
The CARES Act, signed into law on March 27, 2020, provides $30.75 billion in emergency aid to help early learning, elementary, secondary, and postsecondary institutions and students address the COVID-19 pandemic. (4/17/20)
Huffington Post: Senate Democrats Press For $50 Billion Child Care Bailout In Next Stimulus
The system is in danger of collapse, warn Sens. Elizabeth Warren and Tina Smith in a letter signed by 28 other lawmakers. (Peck, 4/29/20)
First Five Years Fund: Legislation in Response to COVID-19 Supports Providers and Families
Recognizing the essential role of child care — its proven benefits to a child’s learning and healthy development and its support of America’s labor market and economy by allowing parents to work or attend school — the federal response to the COVID-19 pandemic has included assistance to young children, their families, and the child care providers who care for them. (4/28/20)
The Washington Post: D.C. day-care centers, shut out of stimulus money, struggle to hang on until children return
Even if they do manage to survive until the city reopens, they’re unsure how they’ll afford to adhere to the recommended health and social distancing guidelines, which would require ample protective equipment and fewer children in classrooms. (Stein, 4/30/20)
