Excerpted from introduction
The following guidance is intended to inform policy and practice for childcare providers who remain
open during the COVID-19 public health emergency to provide childcare services for essential personnel. The current emergency requires close coordination between childcare professionals and local health officials as well as elected officials and community leaders particularly around monitoring and closings. This guidance reflects consensus based on public health principles and review of guidelines from the federal government, several states, and the American Academy of Pediatrics. The guidance begins with the first principle that state regulation and guidance for emergency childcare should “do no harm” by seeking to minimize health risks from childcare based on current knowledge.