Will a Child Care Shortfall Push More Americans Into Unemployment?

Millions of workers have lost their jobs since the COVID-19 pandemic took hold, and with the $600 weekly boost to unemployment benefits set to expire at the end of July, many jobless people will no doubt be itching to get back to work as soon as that opportunity presents itself. There's just one problem: A lack of child care might prevent a lot of people from holding down a job.

Numerous businesses have closed their doors in the wake of COVID-19, and child care centers are no exception. It's estimated that 60% of licensed providers have shut down in the course of the pandemic, according to the Bipartisan Policy Center, and among those that have remained open, many have implemented reduced enrollment procedures in an effort to keep everyone safe. But these businesses -- which aren't exactly rolling in dough to begin with -- can only survive at limited capacity for so long, and if additional child care centers close, even more parents will be out of options during the latter part of 2020.

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Source Fool.com