Experts say childcare cost in Ohio has increased 25% since 2019

COLUMBUS, Ohio — Playing games with her children and husband, Danielle Winters knows firsthand how difficult it can be to afford child care.

“We had two children in child care full time and it costs about as much or more as our mortgage,” said Danielle Winters.   

As a mother of two, she tells me, along with paying for child care, another obstacle is finding quality child care. 

“Finding like either a daycare center or a school that aligns with your priorities and what you want for your family and for your child’s education. And oftentimes there are waitlists or it’s just hard to get in places because there aren’t enough spots for children. Combined with the cost to because you’re going to have to pay for that because it’s really expensive,” said Winters. 

According to the century foundation, the prices for child care in Ohio have increased 25% since 2019 and the average price for an infant in a center is over $12,000 a year. A researcher from The Century Foundation, Julie Kashen says rising child care costs are because of the lack of government attention and funding.

“We should be treating it like a public good, like all of those other programs and services that we all benefit from because we all benefit from child care and early learning. It helps our children grow, it helps our parents work. It matters to everyone. But because we haven’t done that as a country, what that means is that paying for it is on the backs of parents,” said the Director of Women’s Economic Justice for The Century Foundation, Julie Kashen. 

Winters only has one child in child care at the moment and she tells me it’s a little bit more manageable to afford it. But she knows that’s not the case for a lot of mothers. She says a lot of mothers will have to be caregivers and put their careers on hold because they can’t afford child care. 

“I know several women who have had to put child care ahead of their career, and it they’ve either had to step away from their career during these years or they haven’t been able to be as active and maybe pursue the type of career they’d want to,” said Winters.