NCA Endorses The Access to Healthy Food for Young Children Act of 2021
4/22/21
NCA has endorsed the Access to Healthy Food for Young Children Act of 2021, soon to be introduced by Senator Bob Casey (D-PA). The bill would strengthen the Child and Adult Care Food Program (CACFP) by:
- allowing an additional CACFP meal or snack in full-day child care;
- increasing CACFP reimbursements by 10 cents for each meal and snack;
- allowing annual eligibility for proprietary (for-profit) child care centers;
- improving area eligibility for family child care by reducing the threshold to 40 percent;
- allocating $5 million to support the new healthy meal pattern and beverage best practices;
- allowing high-poverty child care centers to collect income applications every four years rather than every year;
- improving the cost of living adjustment for child care home reimbursement rates to reflect more accurately the real costs to providers;
- creating a CACFP Community Eligibility Provision pilot to eliminate income applications for centers; and
- directing USDA to reduce unnecessary paperwork resulting from federal and state regulations and record-keeping requirements.
View NCA’s Policy Priorities for Child Nutrition Reauthorization.
Thank you in advance for prioritizing the well-being of our nation’s children by endorsing this bill.