It’s impossible to avoid news about the Coronavirus (COVID-19) these days, and as child care leaders and providers, you are no doubt getting questions from parents about it. You are also probably wondering, how do I, as a child care provider, prevent Coronavirus from impacting the children in my care? What would I do if Coronavirus showed up in my community or child care facility?  

The first post in this series introduced Child Care Resource and Referral agencies (CCR&Rs) as valuable partners and guides for businesses ready to take action on child care. Let’s dig a little deeper into the current context of child care in America – and then explore the basics of CCR&Rs.

Even though the 2020 Census already began in some parts of the country, we are one month away from  households nationwide receiving official Census Bureau invitations to participate. To help ensure that children age four and under are properly counted, we've compiled news updates from the month of February and the latest resources that will help you prepare: 

The health status of the early care and education workforce in the USA: A scoping review of evidence and current practice  

Lessard, L.M., Wilkins, K., Rose-Malm, J., and Mazzocchi, M.C. Public Health Reviews (January 2020).  

Background: Ten million young children in the U.S. are enrolled in an early care and education (ECE) program such as child care, Head Start or pre-kindergarten. These programs would not function without a workforce of roughly two million ECE teachers and support staff. The ECE workforce is made up almost entirely of women, disproportionately women of color, who earn low wages and receive few benefits. These factors suggest that the ECE workforce may be at a high risk for chronic diseases, but we know little about individuals’ health status. This paper looks at what information we have about the health of the workforce and what types of programs are being used to improve ECE workers’ health.  

The Problem

Providers play a critical role in helping identify children with developmental concerns – if they have the right knowledge and training.

In response to the President’s Budget for Fiscal Year (FY) 2021, Child Care Aware^® of America (CCAoA) Executive Director Dr. Lynette M. Fraga released the following statement:

 “The President’s FY 2021 Budget falls well short of meeting families’ needs. The proposal lacks the robust, long-term investment the child care system needs to ensure our children thrive. In addition, the very same families who struggle to access child care, are hit hard by the proposed Budget’s plans to cut or weaken the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF), Medicaid, the Social Services Block Grant (SSBG), and other critical safety net programs.