Instead, they take in children whose parents have obtained a voucher for child care. No, but they can appear that way because payment is for services already rendered rather than for anticipated services in the future. With this approval in hand, she then goes out looking for a daycare which will accept vouchers. The process can get more complicated if, for example, the DTA referral is for an inappropriate voucher or an inappropriate number of hours. The duration of a child care voucher has been one of the sorest points in the recipient and advocacy community.
Many people feel that the vouchers are issued for too short a term.
In part, we discovered at this meeting, this is because people have to switch their vouchers as their circumstances change. Currently, most vouchers are authorized for no more than six months. Alliance for Young Families and Greater Boston Legal Services commented that they have just seen one for a year. AYF suggested that it would be appropriate for the state Office of Child Care Services to issue regulations here. Depending on the voucher, a recipient may have to visit both DTA and the Resource and Referral agency in order to obtain a renewal.