Siedah White of Fort Pierce was one of over 100 people to comment on WPTV's Facebook page about the issue of childcare costs in Florida. White said the costs ranged from $300 per infant per week to $275 per week for toddlers. She estimated these high costs took up about 20 percent of her household income, which led her to leave her job as a certified nurse assistant and become a full-time mom.
She now hosts a video Mom blog on Instagram and TikTok. White told WPTV on Tuesday that having four children in daycare is not sustainable for her family and that she was just working to pay childcare costs, preventing the family from meeting goals like moving into a larger place and upgrading their family vehicle.
According to the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta, from 2020 to 2024, there was a 29 percent increase in childcare prices compared to a 22 percent rise in overall prices. In the latest study, the Atlanta Fed looked at childcare costs in two states, Georgia and Florida. The report found 85.4 percent of Florida families are estimated to spend more than 7 percent of their income on childcare. The estimated weekly costs for care of infant or toddler and preschool-aged children in Florida are $268 and $208, respectively, and the median percentage of income families would need to pay for childcare is 13.9 percent.