Home / News Biden asked Congress to fix the childcare crisis—with $16 billion in funding AaronAmat/Getty Biden announced last week his request for Congress to intervene on the childcare cliff. By Alexandra Frost November 1, 2023 AaronAmat/Getty Rectangle In September, parents and caregivers watched as we approached the cut-off for pandemic-related government funding for childcare coming to an end. Over 3 million kids’ childcare placements hung in the balance. Now, since the date has come and gone without resolution, Biden announced last week his request for Congress to intervene. Specifically, he requested $16 billion in child-care funding, which would be distributed to all 50 states and the District of Columbia, to stabilize the 225,000 providers who are set to be negatively impacted by funding changes, Washington Post reports. As childcare centers wait for additional funding, 1 in 3 face closure, with the potential to cause upheaval for parents’ day-to-day necessities to continue working. For some, parents are already having to find backup plans and speak to their kids about changing daycare centers. For others, it’s worth a conversation with your childcare providers to see if they are at risk of closure or major cuts, in addition to asking about potential changes in tuition to accommodate the budget cuts. And, like many other issues with society, moms might be more adversely affected than others. Researchers are suggesting that cost and lack of childcare are behind the majority of parents, especially moms, choosing to leave the workforce. If Biden’s funding request is approved, which matches what Democrats had asked for last month, the funding would range from $15 million for states like Wyoming up to $1.8 billion for larger states like Texas. Meanwhile, Biden also recently granted $131 million to higher ed institutions to assist with campus childcare programs for parents who are students. Now, parents will watch for Congress’s response in the coming days. Categories: News, Child Related articles Health & Wellness Here’s what to do if the childcare cliff impacts your family, according to experts September 18, 2023 News When the childcare cliff comes, moms will (literally) pay the price September 8, 2023 Health & Wellness New report shows daycare centers weren’t Covid transmission hubs after all December 2, 2023 Life Parents should be prioritized in the COVID-19 vaccine rollout March 12, 2021 Parenting 81% of Gen Z + Millennials say affordable childcare is an important issue July 23, 2020