Iowa Public Radio
A new report has found about half the state’s licensed child care centers have closed during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The report by the non-profit Child Care Aware of America found the state’s licensed child care centers dropped from nearly 1,590 in January to just over 802 in July.
However, the report found the state’s in-home providers fared much better. They reported 2,542 providers in January and 2,546 providers in July - a slight increase.
Kristina Haynie, a senior data analyst with the non-profit, said licensed centers may be struggling because they have more children and staff to manage.
Dionne Dobbins, the senior director of research at Child Care Aware of America, said parents may be more comfortable during the pandemic putting their children in a space with fewer people and in-home providers have more flexibility serving different aged children.
