DENVER (Jan. 29, 2021) — Today, Gov. Jared Polis announced that educators, including licensed child care providers and staff, can receive the COVID-19 vaccination beginning Feb. 8.
Working families, and Colorado’s entire economy, depend on licensed child care providers to offer safe, high quality care to children. Reducing the number of child care providers who contract COVID-19 protects these essential workers, prevents child care businesses from closing, and supports families who are left without care when a child care facility needs to close due to a COVID-19 outbreak.
“We fully support this opportunity for child care providers to receive the COVID-19 vaccine,” said Mary Alice Cohen, Director of the Colorado Office of Early Childhood. “Making the vaccination available to child care providers and staff is yet another important step toward the end of the pandemic, and ensuring Colorado’s economy can continue to rebuild.”
"Child care providers have faced more challenges in the past 10 months than ever before and yet they have continued to serve children, families, and communities all across Colorado," said Taran Schneider, Executive Director at Healthy Child Care Colorado. "This is a tremendous step toward protecting our critically important child care workforce as well as the children, families, and communities they serve."
Licensed child care programs should work with their local public health agency to access a vaccine. Child care providers who are struggling to develop a vaccination plan or access the vaccine can request assistance from the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment (CDPHE) by filling out a request form.
The Office of Early Childhood will provide a letter that licensed child care programs and staff members can use for verification when they receive their vaccine. The letter will be emailed to licensed child care programs in Colorado the week of February 1st. If providers have questions about the verification letter they can contact child care licensing at 1-800-799-5876 or cdhs_oec_communications@state.co.us.
Media contact:
Madlynn Ruble, Deputy Director of Communications
madlynn.ruble@state.co.us
303.866.3411