We’re worrying about the wrong thing. Low birth rate isn’t the crisis: Child care is.

Source: USA Today
by Dawn Huckelbridge

“Let’s just get this out of the way: The birth rate is a red herring. It’s been a common refrain that if the Trump administration and congressional leadership truly wanted to make it easier for families in America to grow and thrive, they would turn to policies like national paid leave, affordable child care, maternal health care and home and community-based services for our aging and disabled loved ones. They would be investing in early education and the caregiving workforce. They would be supporting commonsense accommodations like remote work. They would be growing social safety nets. But they’ve done none of that. Their response to child care is to send in grandma. They’ve said next to nothing about paid leave.” (05/15/25)

https://www.usatoday.com/story/opinion/2025/05/15/kids-parents-paid-leave-childcare-crisis/83369387007/