New Program Offers Subsidized Child Care to
Guard, Reserve

The Defense Department has joined forces with national agencies to help Guard and Reserve Families in finding and affording child care while Mom or Dad are deployed in support of the global war on terrorism.

DoD, in partnership with the National Association of Child Care Resource and Referral Agencies, which administers the program, designed this initiative to benefit those who do not live near military installations.

When a parent is deployed, she said, the remaining parent may discover that child care is something the couple hadn't had to think of before. And need is not the only consideration. The extra expense can be shocking.

While OMCC doesn't fully subsidize child care, it does work to reduce the financial burden, Witte said. The fees are based on a sliding scale that takes into consideration total Family income and the care provider's actual cost, among other things.

To take part in the program, a Family member would apply through NACCRRA via a special Web site or by a toll-free call to (800) 424-2246. The child-care provider also must apply -- an important step because of how the subsidy, which comes through the Children and Youth office, is paid out.

NACCRRA also supports the Guard and Reserve through a program called Operation Child Care. OCC is a voluntary NACCRRA program that provides up to six hours of free child care to Guard and Reserve Families whose deployed servicemember is returning home for rest and recuperation.

NACCRRA is a very well-respected alliance of all the child-care resource and referral agencies in the nation.