Child Care Assistance Harder to Come By in Challenging Economic Times

The National Women’s Law Center recently reported that families needing child care assistance in 37 states, including Connecticut, were worse off in 2011 than they were in 2010 because of state policy changes. These changes include lowering income eligibility limits, longer waiting lists, requiring copayments, lower reimbursement rates for child care providers, and limiting eligibility for parents searching for a job.

Twenty-two states reported waiting lists or a freeze on intake for families seeking child care assistance in 2011, up from 19 states in 2010. Connecticut currently has no waiting list, but is one of four states that lowered the child care assistance income eligibility limit. The eligibility for a family of three in Connecticut dropped from $61,556 in 2010 to $42,690 in 2011.