TODAY.com
A large-scale study conducted by Yale University found that child care is not associated with the spread of the coronavirus.
The study, published in Pediatrics, the peer-reviewed journal of the American Academy of Pediatrics, found that child care programs that stayed open throughout the pandemic did not contribute to the spread of the virus to providers if those child care programs were in areas with low COVID-19 spread and took multiple safety measures, including disinfecting surfaces, hand washing, screening for symptoms, social distancing, masking and limiting group sizes.
Lynette Fraga, Ph.D., the CEO of Child Care Aware of America (a resource to help families access quality, affordable child care), which participated in the study and offered recommendations based on its results, said that the study shows that it can be possible to reopen child care safely as long as appropriate measures are taken.
"This study shows that to be open safely, child care providers will need to practice mitigation and prevention strategies which cost money," Fraga said. "And, at times, it may not be safe for child care to be open if community transmission rates are high. To stabilize an industry facing additional costs and ongoing, public health-related closures, significant funding is needed."