DECATUR, Ill. — Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker announced a significant expansion into childcare programs to help keep quality care affordable for the many parents returning to the workplace in the late days of the COVID-19 pandemic.
In a 2 p.m. press conference in Decatur, Pritzker took to the podium to reveal key details about the administration's plan for the industry and how they are supporting it.
Beginning on July 1st, the Illinois Department of Human Services is making several improvements to the childcare system in the state, especially aimed at making it more accessible to lower-income families, including: reducing family payments and copayments, preserving co-pay percentage limits, keeping families eligible for assistance as their incomes grows, increasing reimbursement rates, and improving provider predictability across the system.
“When I took office, I said that we are aiming to make Illinois the best state in the nation for families raising young children. Today, I’m proud to announce another important step in that direction. We are making a series of new investments to make childcare more affordable for Illinois families, and deliver more dollars to providers,” said Governor JB Pritzker. “We’re ensuring quality childcare is accessible for more people – allowing more people to return to work without worry about where their kids will go during the day and helping Illinois’ childcare network rebuild after the last 16 months.”