Just when parents of young children thought the COVID pandemic was behind them, what is now being called a “triple epidemic” made up of COVID-19, flu and respiratory viruses threatens an already damaged child care system, according to reports.
Not only that, but children’s hospitals across the country are becoming stressed, the Associated Press reported, and parents of babies with less severe cases of COVID-19 are having to self-quarantine, testing the patience of employers. .
A 1-year-old boy wears a band-aid after receiving a dose of the Moderna Covid-19 vaccine at the Brooklyn Children’s Museum vaccination site, which serves children ages six months to 5 years, in the Brooklyn borough of New York , USA on Thursday, June 23, 2022.
(Photographer: Michael Nagle/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
The Bureau of Labor Statistics shows that 104,000 people had to miss work in October due to childcare issues, which is the most in a month, even compared to early levels of the pandemic.
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Many of the parents who missed work because their children were sick were not paid, the AP reported, ultimately hurting families financially.
In the past two weeks, many families have gathered for the holidays, worrying doctors who fear the number of sick children will only rise.
The child care system is also experiencing stress, not only from staff shortages, but also from child and teacher illnesses.
Carolyn Ruyle, a registered nurse at Lurie Children’s Hospital, prepares a dose of a Pfizer COVID-19 vaccine at Lurie Children’s Hospital on Friday, Nov. 5, 2021, in Chicago.
(AP Photo/Nam Y. Huh)
The AP reported that when the pandemic began, women left their careers at a higher rate than men.
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“Since then, women have returned to the workforce, particularly women of color,” the AP told Diane Swonk of professional services firm KPMG.
Swonk went on to say that the share of working-age women in the US lags behind most industrialized nations, which can be attributed to the lack of universal preschool and paid family leave in the US. .
Childcare delivery, phase 4 reopening during the Coronavirus pandemic, Queens, New York. (Photo by: Lindsey Nicholson/Education Images/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)
(Photo by: Lindsey Nicholson/Education Images/Universal Images Group via Getty Images)
Therefore, all jobs suffer from labor shortages, including daycare centers.
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The Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that the US had 8% fewer child care workers in November than it did before the pandemic.
In addition, the AP explained, the strong job market raised the cost of hiring new employees, making childcare hard to find and expensive. When facilities are short-staffed, they often close when staff or students are sick.
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The isolation guidelines also hit parents of young children hard because, while older preschoolers can return to school wearing masks five days after a COVID-19 diagnosis, children under the age of two cannot. doing so because they risk suffocation from wearing a mask, the AP reported.
Associated Press contributed to this report.
