Entry #4 Infant Care Prices

                                                     

                                                                         You see this cute baby boy? 

This is my nephew, Elijah; he is so precious to my family and me. For essay number two, I am writing about how high the cost of infant care prices is, as a local and community problem. I believe it can be improved if taken more seriously as a problem for mothers in my community. In Glendale, there are not many options for affordable infant care; infant care ranges between $900-$1500 a month (What Is the Average Cost of Daycare in Arizona? (2025)). This doesn't include the concerns for the actual care that goes into our infants in this community. 

My sisters-in-law's main concerns were the overcrowding in certain daycares. For example, if my nephew were last in line to get his diaper changed, he would be more susceptible to rash and other infections. The wretched cold and flu season is here, and babies are more likely to get sick if they are packed together in daycares where there is an employee shortage. Then my sister-in-law had the dilemma of breastfeeding my nephew as well; some babies and mothers alike have different experiences when it comes to the baby's feeding routine. My sister-in-law has always breastfed her babies until they were ready for food. Around 6-8months, most babies are food ready and don't go back to formula or breastmilk at all. For my specific situation, my nephew is a breastfeeder only and will not take a bottle. In this case and many cases like it, it's hard for mothers who have a short maternity leave with no extension to feed and care for their infant. 

Not only are prices high for many mothers for daycare, but the baby's needs are never met with the complete absence of the mother in the beginning months of a child's life. We no longer live in an economy where mothers can stay home with their children or drop the kids off with neighbors. Not even I, a single young girl, can live without having a job and paying bills with much time to do all the things I'd like to do. I couldn't imagine for my older brother and sister-in-law. My brother has two jobs, and my sister has a full-time job as well. They have a rambunctious 7-year-old and a brand-new, chatty 5-month-old. They love their family so much, and I love my niece and nephew; it's hard to see not just them but others not be able to get the care they need for their babies. In my essay, I propose the solution of employee-sponsored infant care. With subsidies and stipends, I read on the National Child Care Association site that there are cases where jobs have lowered the cost of daycare to as much as $100 a month (Employer-Sponsored Child Care Help - NCCA). 

Now, personally speaking, I believe responsibility shouldn't be on the employer. If that's the case, then high childcare prices should be a consideration when deciding whether to have babies. I wish life were that simple and everyone had it all figured out. It's not that simple, and with this kind of help, studies have already shown that this limits employee absenteeism and often results in losing employees to this problem. This also cuts other spending on recruiting and training costs. This actually saves money for companies and institutions with parents in need of care for their babies. That is a piece of what I am writing about, and I thought I'd go into more detail about more of the reasoning for my essay, since I didn't put it all in there.