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North Carolina child care centers struggle to open after Hurricane Helen • NC Newsline

Posted on by L. Dreeye
North Carolina child care centers struggle to open after Hurricane Helen • NC Newsline

According to the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services (NCDHHS), the 55 day care centers in Western North Carolina affected by Hurricane Helen will remain closed for the foreseeable future. The storm damaged more than 200 properties in 25 counties declared major disaster areas.

“Even before Hurricane Helen devastated Western North Carolina, our child care facilities were in financial crisis,” Gov. Roy Cooper said in a statement. “Quality child care is a critical resource not only for children in hurricane-damaged counties, but also for parents working to rebuild their homes and lives.”

Governor Cooper and the Secretary of DHHS. Cody Kinsley
Governor Roy Cooper and the Secretary of DHHS. Cody Kinsley receives an update on Mission Hospital’s operations following Hurricane Helen. (Pool photo: Paul Barker, Office of the Governor)

The governor said work is underway to help programs reopen quickly, but additional funding from the General Assembly is needed both to address the immediate impacts of the storm and to ensure the long-term viability of North Carolina’s child care system.

Hurricane Helen comes as emergency state funding to replace federal COVID-19 child care funds is running out. Cooper warned the state’s child care centers, teachers and parents will be in trouble unless lawmakers provide additional funding to help stabilize their finances.

“North Carolina relies on high-quality early education and child care to support the healthy development and learning of children, enable parents to work and support businesses,” Cooper said earlier this month. “But these programs are now in crisis, and we need the Legislature to step up and make real investments before more daycares close, more early childhood educators leave, and programs become unaffordable for too many parents.”

During the pandemic, the federal government has provided $1.3 billion to North Carolina to help keep child care facilities open. Grants funded by the 2021 Federal American Rescue Plan ended in June. The Republican-led General Assembly has allocated $67.5 million to help fill the shortfall through Dec. 31, but industry officials have said that amount is not enough.

NCDHHS said efforts to safely reopen child care centers align with Cooper’s initiative. decreewhich provides regulatory flexibility in hurricane-damaged counties so that critical services can resume supporting families even as facilities recover and rebuild. Regulated child care facilities that lack normal sources of power, potable water, wastewater treatment, or have lost records, paperwork, or other records may be reopened in accordance with an Emergency Plan developed with their input. child care licensing consultant from the NCDHHS Division of Child Development and Early Education (DCDEE). DCDEE is collaborating with the Division of Public Health (DPH) to develop environmental health guidelines for child care facilities so they can quickly open and operate safely.

“As our friends, neighbors and communities in Western North Carolina begin to recover, we are committed to helping child care facilities reopen safely,” said North Carolina Secretary of Health and Human Services Cody H. Kinsley. “We want children to have access to quality early care and learning, and for parents to return to work confident their children are safe and cared for.”

For families affected by Hurricane Helen who are searching for child care options, NCDHHS has partnered with child care resource and referral agencies to activate the Find Child Care NC Hotline. Families can call 1-888-600-1685 weekdays from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. for help finding an open child care facility near you.