A new national report shows NH ranks as the best state in the country for child well-being, but the lack of affordable and accessible child care continues to challenge families and strain the state's economy.
The 2023 KIDS COUNT Data Book, a 50-state report of recent household data released this week by the Annie E. Casey Foundation, presents national and state data on economic well-being, education, health, and family and community factors and ranks states according to how children are faring.
However, experts say des[pite this ranking, many NH parents struggle to access affordable childcare forcig some to miss wokr or even leave the workforce. “Even if a family can afford child care, the demand on providers currently exceeds their capacity to serve families,” says Rebecca Woitkowski, Kids Count Policy Director for New Futures, a NH health policy and advocacy organization.
“Across New Hampshire, more than 40 child care centers have closed in the last few years, eliminating nearly 1,500 slots for children and adding to the growing demand for availability,” Woitkowski says. “This is an economic issue that needs to be addressed to ensure all our parents can work and contribute to the economy.”
The Data Book reports that in 2020—21, 14% of children in NH ages birth to five lived in families in which someone had to quit, change, or refuse a job because of problems with child care. And women are five to eight times more likely than men to experience negative employment consequences related to caregiving.
New Hampshire’s average cost of center-based child care for a toddler was $12,496, 9% of a married couple’s median income and 31% of a single mother ’s median income in the state.
And retaining chldcare professioanls is difficult due to low pay. Median national pay for child care workers was $28,520 per year or $13.71 an hour in 2022, less than the wage for retail ($14.26) and customer service ($18.16) workers.