First 5 San Diego is excited to announce that the County of San Diego and the City of San Diego have approved the allocation of $5 million each for a total of $10 million towards supporting emergency child care vouchers for essential workers and at-risk populations.

This funding supports eligible families that need increased child care due to school closures and possibly because their provider of choice has closed during the COVID-19 pandemic. This funding will be activated quickly to ensure that all eligible families seeking this support will be able to have security knowing they will have access to a child care voucher that will support them in the coming months. 

This funding supports eligible families of children ages birth to 12 years of age; children at-risk of abuse, neglect or exploitation; children in the foster care system; children with special needs; families experiencing homelessness; and essential workers in prioritized sectors as outlined by the CA Department of Education essential worker priority groups 1-3. 

Overall, this is a historic support of the child care sector and we look forward to the continued collaboration to ensure that our regions child care system is supported throughout this pandemic.