Seven Ways States Can Make Child Care Subsidies More Accessible and Equitable

Research has shown that policies and practices in the child care subsidy system can prevent families from accessing and keeping child care benefits that ensure their children receive care in stable, quality settings. This fact sheet highlights lessons from research and seven ways states can make child care more accessible and equitable for families and more efficient for agencies:

• Examine customer service flexibility, quality, and efficiency
• Simplify application, reporting, and verification requirements
• Change eligibility thresholds
• Talk with parents, providers, and caseworkers to identify barriers to subsidy access and retention
• Improve coordination across programs
• Align and integrate policies and systems across programs
• Build data, information, and reporting capacity.