Do parents still pay when daycare is closed for weeks, or months, because of COVID-19?
Lauren Gard posed the question to her friends on Facebook soon after her son’s daycare closed because of coronavirus. Would they keep paying for services – especially daycare, or preschool – they wouldn’t be able to use for the foreseeable future? It’s a question a lot of parents with young kids are asking themselves and each other right now. Do they have an obligation – legally, but also ethically – to keep paying for daycare when it’s closed?
“I feel like it’s one of so many ethical questions around money that has come up for me,” said Gard, a single mom in suburban Philadelphia whose son, Julian, is 4. “His daycare bills in three installments, and I just got the bill for the third installment. And he’s not going to be in school, I’m quite confident, but those teachers need to be paid.”
Because of that, she feels compelled to keep paying, even if she’s not able to send her son to daycare. At least for now, while the small public relations agency she co-runs still feels solid, and she can afford it. Which was the general consensus when she posted on Facebook, too.
“People said basically that if they can afford to pay, if their financial situation hasn’t been impacted, then they will pay,” Gard said. “But people also were very clear, you have to cover your mortgage first and foremost, and your own health insurance. And we all have to try to take care of each other when we can, but at the end of the day, if you’re not getting these services, then it’s ethically OK not to pay for them.”
Legally, it may come down to each daycare’s contract with parents. Parents cannot be required to pay while a daycare is closed unless the contract specifically addresses extended closures due to a pandemic or a public health emergency, at least in California, according to the Child Care Law Center. But laws can vary by city and state, and there’s a lot of uncertainty and confusion right now among parents and daycare providers alike.