U.S. families struggle with soaring child care cost: media

NEW YORK, March 10 (Xinhua) -- The national average annual cost of child care in the United States is more than 10 percent of the median income for a married couple and more than 35 percent of the median income for a single parent, reported The Hill on Monday.

"Families with children under five are struggling more than everybody else," said the report, adding that "across the country, 1 in 3 U.S. families with young children struggles with the cost of diapers, which hits low-wage families the hardest."

Some 62 percent of U.S. families have reported more concern about the cost of child care now than in the last year, according to the latest survey of Child Care Aware, a U.S. body devoted to helping families nationwide locate quality child care.

The national average annual cost of child care in 2020 far exceeded the benchmark at 10,174 U.S. dollars, a figure more than the average annual cost of in-state college tuition -- 9,580 dollars, reported The Hill, citing EducationData.org.

Meanwhile, the lack of affordable, comprehensive early childhood care and learning has a disproportionate impact on Black, Hispanic, American Indian/Alaska Native, Asian American and migrant children, according to the report.

"Achievement gaps in many of these communities remain persistently high. And it is these families who are struggling most with poverty, food insecurity, unstable housing and the devastating impacts of COVID-related loss and trauma," it added.