Child Care.gov Connects COVID-19 Essential Workers and Other Parents to Open Child Care

May 5, 2020

Safe and affordable child care is a necessity for essential workers and all families who are eager to get back to the workplace. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic ChildCare.gov has created a new page where parents can connect with state specific resources to help them find, and pay for child care now during the COVID -19 pandemic and as the economy rebounds.

Parents, child care providers, and businesses can find direct links to state specific COVID-19 state resources at the top of every ChildCare.gov webpage. The page includes:

  • the opening status of child care
  • access to emergency child care (for essential workers)
  • child care financial assistance
  • help finding child care

The website also links to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s "Guidance for Child Care Programs," including the new, more in-depth "Supplemental Guidance for Programs that Remain Open" during the health emergency.

ChildCare.gov is a national website required by the Child Care and Development Block Grant Reauthorization (CCDBG) Act of 2014. ChildCare.gov provides links to State or Territory child care websites where parents can use a zip code based search for child care and consumer education information.

ChildCare.gov is operated by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), Administration for Children and Families (ACF), Office of Child Care (OCC). OCC administers the Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF) and works with state, territory and tribal governments to provide support for children and their families to find child care programs that will fit their needs and that will prepare children to succeed in school.

CCDF is the primary federal funding source for state child care subsidies to help eligible low-income working families access child care and to improve the quality of child care for all children. The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (CARES Act) (Public Law 116-136), passed into law on March 27, 2020, appropriated an additional $3.5 billion in supplemental CCDF Discretionary funds. This funding provides CCDF Lead Agencies with additional funds to prevent, prepare for, and respond to the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19), and expanded flexibility to provide child care assistance to families and children.

Quick Facts

  • In response to the COVID-19 pandemic ChildCare.gov has created a new page where parents can connect with state specific resources to help them find, and pay for child care now .
  • Parents, child care providers, and businesses can find direct links to state specific COVID-19 state resources at the top of every ChildCare.gov webpage.
  • ChildCare.gov provides links to State or Territory child care websites where parents can use a zip code based search for child care and consumer education information.

Contact

Administration for Children & Families
Office of Communications
330 C Street, S.W.
Washington, D.C. 20201

Phone: (202) 401-9215
Fax: (202) 205-9688
Email: media@acf.hhs.gov