Many Americans Living in “Child Care Deserts”
More than 40 percent of American children under age five live in ZIP codes with either no child care centers or far too few to accommodate local families, according to a new report from the Center for American Progress. Child Care Deserts: An Analysis of Child Care Centers by ZIP Code in 8 States examines the capacity of child care centers relative to the number of young children living nearby, finding that in the eight states surveyed, more than 27 million children live in areas without adequate child care service. The authors argue that this analysis shows that lowering the cost of high-quality child care will not necessarily grant more families access, and that the next administration should invest in increasing the supply of child care.