A Fort Pierce mother has left her job as a certified nurse assistant after childcare costs for her four children consumed approximately 20% of her household income, making it financially unsustainable to continue working. Siedah White was among more than 100 people who responded to WPTV's Facebook page about rising childcare expenses in Florida, an issue affecting the vast majority of families across the state according to new federal data.
White was paying $300 per week for each infant and $275 per week for toddlers in childcare. The expenses left her working solely to cover childcare bills while preventing her family from achieving other financial goals. "I was just working just to pay childcare, and we weren't able to meet our family goals as far as needing to move into a larger place and upgrading our family vehicle," White said. She has since become a full-time mother and now hosts a video mom blog on Instagram and TikTok.
The Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta reports that childcare prices increased 29% from 2020 to 2024, compared to a 22% rise in overall prices during the same period. The costs now frequently exceed the 7% of income affordability benchmark established by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The Atlanta Fed's latest study examined childcare costs in Georgia and Florida specifically.
The report found that 85.4% of Florida families are estimated to spend more than 7% of their income on childcare. The estimated weekly costs for infant or toddler care and preschool-aged children in Florida are $268 and $208 respectively. The median percentage of income that Florida families would need to pay for childcare stands at 13.9%, nearly double the federal affordability benchmark.
According to the study, these costs are placing significant financial pressure on parents throughout the state and forcing difficult decisions about work hours and employment. Some parents, like White, are leaving the workforce entirely because the cost of working exceeds the financial benefit.