At least double rent is how some reports are describing the cost of child care for families with more than one child.
About $11,600 is what Child Care Aware reports as the average child care cost in 2023, and there have been jumps in these costs since the Covid-19 pandemic.
Average child care costs rising between 3-5 percent each year since 2020 after a 1-2 percent annual increase in years leading up to 2020 according to Child Care Aware.
“Ever since then just the cost of living has just been skyrocketing out of control and it’s forced us to charge our parents and our children’s parents to pay a little more money just to keep this place running,”
And keeping the place running has not been an easy task according to the daycare.
“We have to be able to pay our employees and those that are working here, They deserve to be paid even more than what they are paid.
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services suggests spending seven percent or less on child care.
Nationally, it takes about 10 percent of a married couple’s median income, and over 30 percent of a single parent’s median income according to Child Care Aware.
A representative with the PA Department of Human Services said Pennsylvania does have one program that helps cover costs of child care.
It’s called the Child Care Works (CCW) program which generally helps lower income families according to an Early Learning Resource Center official.
Authorities said in Governor Josh Shapiro’s proposed budget for 2024-25 there is more than $62 million in funding for that program.
