Early Care & Education

Head Start preschool programs provide high-quality early childhood education (ECE) services for children ages three to five and engages families in comprehensive services to support health and well-being.

Nutrition assistance programs have been shown to increase children’s health and well-being and decrease the risk of child maltreatment. At the same time, food insecurity rose in the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic.

This factsheet provides descriptive information on child care eligibility and receipt. Of the 12.5 million children potentially eligible for child care subsidies under federal rules, 16 percent received subsidies. Of the 8.7 million children eligible for child care subsidies under more restrictive state rules, 23 percent received subsidies.

This Data Point presents current estimates of uninsured rates among early care and education workers (ECE), which includes individuals employed by Head Start, childcare center providers, and preschools. These populations have lower incomes on average and often lack access to benefits, including health coverage, commonly received by teachers in the K-12 system and post-secondary schools.

COVID-19 pandemic’s social restrictions have prompted a surge in the mental health needs of children of all ages. Nationwide 4.3 million children/adolescents have been diagnosed with COVID-19 as of August 2021, and many of them have returned to early childhood and school settings. Schools and early childhood programs have long been essential settings for delivery of mental health services.

This project examines the initial effects of policy changes required by the 2014 reauthorization of the Child Care and Development Fund (CCDF) program as well as the subsequent CCDF final rule published in September 2016 by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).

Children under age five are about as likely to participate in nonparental care arrangements as they were in the mid-1990s. Children in nonparental care are now more likely to participate in center programs and less likely to receive care from family child care providers.

This research brief presents findings using national data from child care subsidy administrative records that states submit to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS). The analysis shows that a greater percentage of subsidized care occurred in licensed child care centers in FY 2016 than in FY 2005.

ASPE Report   By: Tamara G. Halle, Elizabeth C. Hair, Margaret Buchinal, Rachel Anderson, and Martha Zaslow Prepared for: Laura Radel Office of the Assistant Secretary for Planning and Evaluation (ASPE) U.S. Department of Health and Human Services