New YorkCNN —
Being a working parent seeking affordable, accessible and high-quality child care in the United States can be as tricky — but much less fun — than solving the Rubik’s cube.
The good news: More employers have started to offer child care benefits. The bad news: They are still in the minority.
The average cost of daycare per week is $293 for one toddler and $556 for two, according to Care.com. But the actual cost of care to a family varies widely based on zip code, a child’s age, and whether a parent is seeking home-based care or center care.
All in, however, data from the US Department of Labor show the annual cost for care of just one child — whether infant, toddler, pre-school or school-age — can easily eat up 15% to 20% of the median family income in many counties across the country.
That is well above the 7% of family income that the US Department of Health and Human Services set as a federal benchmark for affordability.
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