The CDC Guidance outlines critical planning and activities which should occur in child care settings to protect the health and safety of both children and staff. There are four critical parts of the CDC Guidance that align with Executive Orders (EO) issued by Pennsylvania Department of Health in the Guidance for Businesses Permitted to Operate During the COVID-19 Disaster Emergency to Ensure the Safety and Health of Employees and the Public and the Order of the Secretary of Health Requiring Universal Face Coverings. Those four critical elements (“Critical Elements”) are:

1. Child care staff must wear face coverings indoors; they must also wear face coverings outside where staff are unable to maintain the 6-foot social distance, unless a medical reason prevents the staff from wearing a face covering. This includes anyone who has trouble breathing, is unconscious, incapacitated or otherwise unable to remove the face covering without assistance.
2. The child care program must establish and implement a screening procedure to assess for symptoms of COVID-19 for staff and children prior to entering child care space and mingling with others. CDC guidance should be followed in developing the screening procedure.
3. The child care program must have a written health and safety plan that aligns with CDC guidance to minimize the risk of COVID-19. The safety plan must be communicated to staff and enrolled At a minimum the safety plan must address:
   1. Screening procedures,
   2. Child drop-off and pick-up policies,
   3. Sick policies,
   4. Mask policy, and
   5. Cleaning/sanitation

Please see the Child Care Facility COVID 19 Health and Safety Plan Template for developing a health and safety plan.

4. The child care program must adhere to the reporting of suspected or confirmed cases of enrolled children or staff with COVID-19 and complying with follow-up guidance pertaining to remediation, quarantine and directive for temporary closure to address additional cleaning and sanitation.

Effective July 17, 2020, child care certification representatives will cite child care programs operating out of compliance with the previously described Critical Elements derived from CDC guidance. The citations for items 1-4 will be issued under 3270.21, 3280.20, and 3290.18, all pertaining to “general health and safety.” Child care programs failing to comply with acceptable plans of correction, may be subject to further action that impacts the child care programs’ Certificate of Compliance, ability to continue to operate, and eligibility for distributions of supplemental financial supports.