By Ailsa Chang

(EXCERPT)

CHANG: And how much more expensive has it been to operate during this pandemic as someone who operates a child care facility?

COVERT: Yeah, the costs have really gone up. According to the National Women’s Law Center and an organization called CLASP, for a child care center, costs are 23% higher. And for an in-home provider, it’s 19% higher. And again, if you’re starting from really thin margins, you probably don’t have financial cushion to dip into for those extra costs, so a lot of them are actually operating in the red right now.

Listen to the interview here.