Pritzker Announces Significant Expansion of Financial Assistance for
Families Seeking Child Care and Providers
80% of Families Will Pay Less for Child Care as
Copayments are Permanently Reduced
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[June 30, 2021]
DECATUR - Building on his commitment to making Illinois the leading
state in the country for families raising young children, Governor JB
Pritzker today announced a significant expansion of financial assistance
for both families and providers that allow children to return to
quality, affordable child care programs. Eighty percent of families will
pay less for child care under this latest round of changes, to be
administered by the Illinois Department of Human Services’ (DHS) Child
Care Assistance Program (CCAP).
“When I took office, I said that we are aiming to make Illinois the best
state in the nation for families raising young children. Today, I’m
proud to announce another important step in that direction. We are
making a series of new investments to make childcare more affordable for
Illinois families, and deliver more dollars to providers,” said Governor
JB Pritzker. “We’re ensuring quality childcare is accessible for more
people – allowing more people to return to work without worry about
where their kids will go during the day and helping Illinois’ childcare
network rebuild after the last 16 months.”
![](http://archives.lincolndailynews.com/2021/Jun/30/images/ads/current/charrons_bch041713.png)
Beginning July 1, DHS will facilitate the following improvements:
Reducing family payments: Family payments or copayments -- the monthly
amount parents are required to pay to childcare providers for the cost
of their child care -- will be permanently lowered to $1 per month for
families with incomes at or below 100% of the Federal Poverty Limit
(FPL). 80% of all families will see a reduction in their monthly co-pay.
Preserving co-pay percentage limits: Family payments will remain
permanently capped at 7% of family income, with co-pays for 80% of
families falling below that rate.
Helping families as income grows: Going forward, CCAP families will now
remain eligible until the family’s income surpasses 250% of the Federal
Poverty Level (FPL), instead of the current cap of 225%. The income
thresholds to be eligible for and to remain on the Child Care Assistance
Program have been updated to current FPL and State Median Income (SMI)
amounts. Payments will increase from there on a sliding scale based on
family income. These improvements allow families more flexibility as
people begin to return to work and rebuild from the financial impact of
the COVID 19 pandemic.
Increasing reimbursement rates by 3.5% for all CCAP providers to help
providers keep their doors open and fully recover from the pandemic.
Improving predictability for providers: If a child receiving CCAP
attends at least 70% of eligible days in a month, providers will be paid
for the full month. The previous policy required an 80% attendance rate.
This change will allow for more stable payments for providers in the
event of occasional absences.
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“The COVID-19 pandemic triggered an acute child care
crisis. Working parents lost care and child-care workers found
themselves without jobs. Parents, mostly mothers, left jobs or
reduced hours to fill the gap. Child care is the work that enables
all other work; child care allows parents to work while their
children experience the myriad of benefits that come from
high-quality early care and education and I’m pleased to work with
Governor Pritzker to provide this much needed relief,” said Grace B.
Hou, Secretary of the Illinois Department of Human Services.
“If we are ever going to break the cycle of poverty, Gov. Pritzker
and Sec. Hou are on the right track with helping families have
access to high quality childcare in Illinois. They continue to fight
to make sure that children in Illinois receive the best start at
life by having a strong start in early childhood education. Working
families should have high quality options of childcare for their
children, regardless of income. I applaud the Governor and Sec. Hou
for being laser focused on helping families meet the financial needs
for a bright future with a high quality and afford childcare
program,” said Representative LaShawn Ford (D-Chicago).
“As we work to rebuild Illinois, it’s time to start treating child
care as essential infrastructure and these changes are a positive
step in the right direction to do that. Ensuring that all families
have access to quality childcare allows us to give back to the
frontline workers that have assisted us throughout the course of the
pandemic. Governor Pritzker’s improvements will help alleviate labor
shortages in a number of sectors by allowing parents to more easily
get back to work as the state reopens,” said Representative Lakesia
Collins (D-Chicago).
“Child care is essential to working families, and our recovery and
growth as a state. These actions will help keep child care
affordable for families and providers’ doors open. As advocates and
providers, we celebrate these actions from the Governor, which
continue to prioritize children, families, and the providers that
support them,” said April Janney, President & CEO of Illinois Action
for Children.
![](http://archives.lincolndailynews.com/2021/Jun/30/images/ads/current/stclara_lda_SPONSOR_090519.png)
IDHS' Child Care Assistance Program provides low-income, working
families with access to affordable, quality child care that allows
them to continue working and contributes to the healthy, social and
emotional development of the child. Families can stay connected with
the program on the Child Care Assistance Program Facebook page or at
the IDHS website.
[Office of the Governor JB Pritzker] |