Child Care Voucher Programs: Provider Experiences in Five Counties (PDF)
By Gina Adams, Monica Rohacek, Kathleen Snyder
2008
Summary: This report examines the experiences of child care centers and licensed family child care homes with the voucher subsidy system in 2003-2004. Research focuses on child care providers in five counties: Jefferson County, Alabama; San Diego County, California; Monterey County, California; Hudson County, New Jersey; and King County, Washington. Research identifies some important consistencies across the sites in both the strengths and the weaknesses of the voucher system from the perspective of providers. Data indicate that although the voucher subsidy system appears to be functioning well for child care providers in many ways, there also appear to be challenges. The costs of these challenges are not significant enough to deter providers from serving children with vouchers; however, they do appear to lead some providers to limit the number of children they serve. These costs have implications for providers’ financial well-being and the quality of care they can offer. Practical policy strategies are offered to address these challenges. Policymakers interested in improving the system for providers will benefit by working to identify solutions at all levels.
Index Terms: Child Care Subsidy Program, Policies, Strategic Planning, Subsidized Child Care, Vouchers
Publisher: The Urban Institute
Publication Type: Reports (Descriptive)
Pages: 213 pages
Language: English
URL: http://www.urban.org/UploadedPDF/411667_provider_experiences.pdf
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