A study finds that in 32 states, including Massachusetts, it costs more to send a toddler to preschool or day care than it does to send an 18-year-old to college.
Massachusetts has the second-highest cost of child care in the country, second only to Washington D.C, according to the Economic Policy Institute (EPI),
The EPI is calling for change, saying child care is not affordable for many families.
Infant care costs in Massachusetts would take up almost a fifth of a typical family’s income.
The annual cost of child care for an infant in Massachusetts is more than $17,000 which is more than $1,400 per month.
That cost is nearly $6,300 more than tuition for an in-state, public college.
The study says a worker earning minimum wage in Massachusetts would need to work full-time for 43 weeks just to pay for child care for one infant.
More data from the EPI is available here.
(Copyright (c) 2016 Sunbeam Television. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)