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How EY can help
Childcare is one of the program areas that became subject to digital transformation and government human services and continues to evolve. Amid a historically tight labor market, parents continue to be challenged with limited access, affordability and uncertain quality. Childcare costs represent 8% to 19.3% of median family income per child, according to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics. While the American Rescue Plan Act provided significant funding to childcare providers to fortify their networks, many were, and remain challenged to recruit and maintain workers and some still shutting their doors altogether. While the pandemic is hopefully in the rear-view mirror, it highlighted these issues and brought some innovation to service delivery, yet the conundrum is still far from over for American families.
Families continue to face a gauntlet of challenges to find basic resources, including parsing the varied eligibility requirements and completing highly repetitive applications. In fact, research shows that vital services are not reaching vulnerable children and families who could benefit from the other wraparound forms of support. Other benefits — such as Women, Infants, and Children (WIC); food assistance (Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program); and cash assistance (Temporary Assistance for Needy Families) — are underutilized, according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services). If government could use additional innovation in digital technology — and enable transformations that keep humans at the center of their plans — those families could be connected to services efficiently and cost-effectively.
The second phase of Connected Citizens took a deep dive into the personas and focused on families with children under the age of 5. By understanding the personas and how these individuals want to digitally engage with government, the research found that there is still apprehension in moving to purely digital services. However, when the interviewees discovered that information was being shared for their benefit — to access multiple services and connect to available childcare agencies, with a clear line of sight to quality ratings, for example — the support was resounding. The research gives us insights into eight key priorities necessary for government to succeed in digital transformation.