As polls show that Americans consider the cost of childcare in the U.S. to be a major problem, one state will begin offering no-cost universal healthcare starting Nov. 1.
New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham and the New Mexico Early Childhood Education and Care Department announced the plan Monday. In a press release, the state described the move as a “groundbreaking” and a “historic milestone.”
Child care assistance allows families to achieve greater financial stability, more time to focus on their children and the ability to choose high quality care, said New Mexico’s press release.
In July, Audacy reported on AP-NORC poll results that indicated 76% of Americans think the costs of childcare are a major problem. While New Mexico’s Lujan Grisham is a Democrat, a poll of Republican primary voters from the Bipartisan Policy Center and Cygnal that was conducted this summer found that members of the GOP also consider childcare costs to be an important issue.
Per those poll results, 90% of respondents said that child care is essential for working families and a strong economy. Additionally, 64% concerned that lack of child care will make it harder for businesses to hire and retain talent and 71% said “making child care more affordable is one of the most pro-family, pro-worker actions that government can take.”
According to the Economic Policy Institute, a bipartisan think tank, child care for one infant is more expensive than public college tuition in 38 states and Washington D.C. as of this year. Department of Labor data updated in 2022 showed that the median annual price for childcare in the U.S. ranged from $6,552 to $15,600 and updated fact sheets from the EPI indicate that childcare can now cost as low as $572 per month in Mississippi to as high as $2,363 per month in Washington D.C. for a household with one infant.
“Child care is unaffordable for working families everywhere in the country, and it’s even more unattainable for minimum wage workers and the very workers that administer child care,” said Katherine deCourcy, EPI research assistant. “This isn’t inevitable – it is a policy choice. Federal and state policymakers can and should act to make child care more affordable, and ensure that child care workers can afford the same quality of care for their own children.”
With the new childcare program in New Mexico all families will have access to free childcare, regardless of income. To provide this, the state plans to remove all income eligibility requirements from the state’s child care assistance program and continue a waiver of family copayments.
Other aspects of the program include: establishing a $12.7 million low-interest loan fund to construct, expand, and renovate child care facilities, an additional $20 million requested in the Fiscal Year 2027 budget; plans to focus more on care for infants, toddlers, low-income families, and children with special needs; partnering with employers and school districts to expand child care options for working families; launching a statewide campaign to recruit licensed and registered home providers and rising reimbursement rates to reflect the true cost of care and support providers.
In order to truly have a universal system, New Mexico expects that it will need an additional 5,000 early childhood professionals in the workforce. Programs that commit to paying entry-level staff a minimum of $18 per hour and offer 10 hours of care per day, five days a week will receive an incentive rate to help meet this goal.
“Child care is essential to family stability, workforce participation, and New Mexico’s future prosperity,” said Lujan Grisham. “By investing in universal child care, we are giving families financial relief, supporting our economy, and ensuring that every child has the opportunity to grow and thrive.”
New Mexico’s Early Childhood Education and Care Department was established in 2019 and since then the state has expanded access to no-cost childcare to families with incomes at or below 400% of the federal poverty level. When the new program kicks in, the estimated annual savings for families in state should come in at around $12,000 per child.
“New Mexico is creating the conditions for better outcomes in health, learning, and well-being,” said Neal Halfon, professor of pediatrics, public health and public policy at the University of California, Los Angeles, and director of the Center for Healthier Children, Families, and Communities. “Its approach is rooted in data, driven by communities, and becoming a model for the nation.”
Michelle Kang, president and CEO of the National Association of the Education of Young Children (NAEYC) said that New Mexico’s move to prioritize public investments in child care is “leading the way” to building sustainable, affordable child care. She also said it shows that “it can be done.”
While New Mexico’s program is the first universal childcare offered in the U.S., other states offer various levels of child care support. However, according to a 2023 analysis by the First Five Years Fund, support from nation’s main federal child care program – the Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG) – only reached 15% of income eligible families.
“Families across the country are struggling to find quality and affordable child care,” said Cheryl Oldham, executive vice president of the Bipartisan Policy Center’s Human Capital program. “We know that child care is not optional or a luxury for most families, it’s essential. There are nearly 14 million children in this country with all parents in the workforce – they need care.”