Coronavirus cases take big jump in Texas day care centers - The Dallas Morning News

Texas’ day care centers have reported a total of 950 coronavirus cases, marking an increase of 540 cases in less than two weeks.

The latest count includes 643 staff members and 307 children at 668 licensed child care centers, the Texas Health and Human Services Commission reported Tuesday.

Until recently, day care centers had remained relatively insulated. On May 21, Texas had reported only 67 coronavirus cases in licensed facilities, according to KVUE-TV in Austin.

The commission doesn’t track deaths, hospitalizations and recoveries linked to coronavirus in day cares, a spokeswoman said Tuesday.

Child care centers remained open during the early stages of the pandemic for children of essential workers. On May 18, Gov. Greg Abbott allowed day cares to open for nonessential workers but with emergency regulations that included prescreening requirements and guidelines for entry and child pickup.

The state repealed the emergency requirements June 12, but 11 days later Abbott directed the Health and Human Services Commission to reinstitute guidelines because of a spike in cases. The commission implemented similar emergency rules June 25 but didn’t include social distancing regulations or require masks for employees or children.

Stephanie Rubin, CEO of Texans Care for Children in Austin, said June 19 that there always has been an “acceptable risk” when it comes to the spread of germs and parents enrolling their children in day care centers.

“That’s something parents have accepted for a long time,” Rubin said. “But in these days of COVID-19, I think parents are really concerned about that prospect.”

Thousands of licensed child care centers across the state have closed during the pandemic.

In February, before coronavirus hit North Texas, the state’s 17,279 licensed and registered child care centers and homes were caring for an estimated 1.1 million children, according to the Health and Human Services Commission. As of June 19, there were 12,196 facilities open.

Tori Mannes, president and CEO of ChildCareGroup — a nonprofit that operates eight centers, partners with local school districts and manages subsidy programs for hundreds across the state — has said maintaining extra safety requirements while operating with lower enrollment can be expensive for businesses that operate on a razor-thin budget even during normal times.

“We are doing everything we can to support and sustain our child care providers because when we get to the other side of COVID-19, our economy and the workforce are going to need child care centers to be open and operational,” Mannes said.

An uptick in cases

Here’s a look at the recent increase in positive coronavirus cases at licensed Texas day cares, according to the Health and Human Services Commission.

Date	Cases	Facilities
May 21	67	60
June 15	210	177
June 18	339	270
June 19	410	318
June 30	950	668

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