Washington, D.C. — Child care is one of the most expensive items in family budgets. A new Center for American Progress analysis finds that the cost of care can push an estimated 134,000 families into poverty each year.
High child care costs can have disastrous effects, particularly for lower-income families already struggling to make ends meet. This new brief examines how these high child care costs can force families to turn to a safety net that cannot withstand the consequences of the child care crisis and how policymakers can expand access to affordable, high-quality child care to protect more families from falling into poverty. Some of the key takeaways from this brief include:
- Among impoverished families with children under age 6 who pay for child care, 35 percent were pushed into poverty by these expenses, totaling about 134,000 families per year.
- An average of around 446,000 middle-class families are pushed into a lower income bracket by child care costs each year.
- 2.2 million families with young children pay unaffordable rates for child care each year, spending more than 7 percent of their income on care.
- The Child Care for Working Families Act (CCWFA) could significantly reduce or eliminate these costs for the large majority of low- and middle-income families and cut the median cost of care families pay annually by two-thirds, from roughly $7,500 to $2,500.
- The CCWFA could reduce child care expenses for nearly 3.4 million families with young children each year, and nearly 5.4 million families who do not currently pay for care would be eligible for a full subsidy, expanding the options available to parents.
“Child care remains out of reach for far too many families across the country. For those that can access it, there is a danger that the high child care expenses could jeopardize their economic security” said Kyle Ross, policy analyst for Inclusive Economy and co-author of the report. “Passing the Child Care for Working Families Act would make significant progress toward cutting costs for low- and middle-income families and help strengthen the financial well-being of families across the country.”
Read the brief: “Child Care Expenses Push an Estimate 134,000 Families Into Poverty Each Year” by Kyle Ross and Kennedy Andara
For more information or to speak with an expert, please contact Sarah Nadeau at [email protected].