What GAO Found
An estimated 2.2 million children aged 5 and under and 3 million parents of children in this age group have a reported disability, according to GAO’s analysis of the 2019 Early Childhood Program Participation Survey and 2022 Survey of Income and Program Participation data.
Families of children with disabilities and parents with disabilities—including physical, intellectual, and developmental disabilities—reported various barriers to finding and using child care programs, which affected their family’s well-being. For example, when searching for child care, parents could not easily find information about programs that could serve children with disabilities. Parents with disabilities reported difficulties communicating with their child care provider and instances in which they faced exclusion or disparaging comments from staff or other parents. Parents’ difficulties finding and maintaining appropriate child care resulted in some reducing their work hours, leaving their jobs, or moving their families to new locations.
Barriers to Participating in Child Care Programs Described by Parents of Children with Disabilities
- Physically inaccessible facilities
- Exclusion from activities
- Suspension and expulsion from programs
- Early intervention and special education services provided off-site
- Delays receiving early intervention and special education services
- Safety concerns
Blog Post: Think Child Care is Hard to Find? It’s Even Tougher for Children