Massachusetts' application process for child care financial assistance is on track to join the 21st century, allowing families to make virtual appointments, upload documents digitally, and receive communication by text or email.
“Families will be able to apply more easily, they’ll be able to maintain their benefits, and it’ll be much less disruptive for them in terms of their work,” said Early Education and Care Commissioner Amy Kershaw. “And children will be able to access much more consistent early education and care.”
Kershaw said the system overhaul took about a year and a half to complete. The goal is to reduce the logistical and bureaucratic burden on families who used to have to coordinate in-person meetings during the work day, bring physical paperwork with them and then watch the mail for communication that they’ve been approved for the program.
The new system will significantly reduce the amount of paperwork that families have to fill out, according to department officials.
“We used to hear [from parents] continually, ‘How many more times do I have to list my child’s name, their birth date, their social security number,’ ” said Amy O’Leary, the executive director of Strategies for Children, an early education advocacy group.
Reducing paperwork for families also reduces the workload for child care providers who are charged with approving and verifying the documents.
“We’re making it easier for them to engage with families, to collect documentation, to understand the rules to work with us in terms of payment,” Kershaw said. “So we’re hoping that will incentivize additional providers to want to participate.”
Currently about 57% of the state’s 9,000 licensed child care providers participate in the financial assistance program.
State leaders said they’ll waive the fee for homeless families to apply for care, reduce the reporting requirements for families with disabilities and parents participating in treatment for substance abuse.
The department has also simplified policy language, made it more inclusive for LGBTQ+ families and plans to translate it into 14 different languages.
This article was originally published on WBUR.org.
Copyright 2023 WBUR. To see more, visit WBUR.
