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Updated OCC Compliance Announcements

The reauthorized Child Care Development Block Grant Fund (CCDF) requires Lead Agencies to maintain compliance with all provisions of the Child Care and Development Block Grant Act (CCDBG), regulations, and the state’s approved CCDF Plan during the administration of their program. The monitoring cycle for FY2019-FY2021 focused on 34 regulations within 11 topical areas of the CCDF regulations. Based on the information gathered during Pennsylvania‘s monitoring visit, OCC has determined that Pennsylvania is in compliance with 28 of 34 regulations.

As part of Pennsylvania’s response to the areas of possible non-compliance regulations, OCDEL has released several policy announcements that pertain to the child care regulations for certified child care facilities so that child care providers understand what is required to be in compliance with the established CCDF regulations and the Pennsylvania Child Care Regulations.

List of OCDEL Policy Announcements

C-22-01: Pediatric First Aid and Pediatric Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) Training Requirements and Access to Free Training through Early Childhood Education Professional Development Organizations (ECE PDOs)

To clarify updated guidance on the federal requirements for Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG), health and safety training requirements that all child care providers must complete pediatric first aid and pediatric cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) training.
Read Full Announcement

C-22-02: Updates to Health and Safety Training and Professional Development Requirements

Includes information related to pre-service training for all child care staff; completion of required health and safety training topics before a child care staff can care for children unsupervised; ongoing annual professional development training for all child care staff; and documentation and verification of pre-service and ongoing professional development training.
Read Full Announcement

C-22-03: Updates to Prevention of Shaken Baby Syndrome, Abusive Head Trauma, and Child Maltreatment Requirements

Includes information related to prevention of Shaken Baby Syndrome, abusive head trauma, and child maltreatment professional development training requirement; and documentation and verification of ongoing professional development training.
Read Full Announcement

C-22-04: Updated Emergency Preparedness and Response Planning Regulations and Requirements for Child Care Facilities

This Announcement updates policy on federal requirements for Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG) and the expectation for all certified child care facilities operating under 55 Pa. Code Chapters § 3270, § 3280, and § 3290 for compliance.
Read Full Announcement

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

If staff complete the Better Kid Care, Get Started with Center-based Care: Building Blocks for Quality (K6.2, C1, CDA6; 10 hours), does it count towards the required Pre-Service training?

Yes, here are the Better Kid Care (BKC) Pre-Service modules in English and Spanish titles for the pre-service courses:

NOTE: These free Better Kid Care modules replaced Health and Safety Basics: Requirements for Certification course on July 1, 2018. Any completion of the Health and Safety Basics: Requirements for Certification course after June 30, 2018, does not count toward the new Health and Safety Professional Development (PD) requirement and is also no longer free to take. For more info, visit Better Kid Care Online Modules to Fulfill Health and Safety PD Requirement ¡Y también disponsible en Español!.

Do all child care staff currently working in a certified child care program need all the PD trainings by April 29, 2022?

Yes, all child care staff must complete PD trainings (also known as Pre-Service Training in Announcement C-22-02) within 90 days of hire.

Current child care staff who have completed the entire Pre-Service training, (Get Started with Center-Based Care: Building Blocks for Quality (PA residents only) or Get Started with Home-Based Care: Building Blocks for Quality (PA residents only) course after June 30, 2018 or Health and Safety Basics: Requirements for Certification prior to June 30, 2018) have completed the trainings needed to care for children unsupervised and no additional Pre-Service training is needed.

OCDEL recommends new child care staff complete the BKC Pre-Service training modules as the quickest and easiest way to meet the Pre-Service training requirement.

For new child care staff still within their 90-day new hire window, the following six (6) required health and safety training topics must be completed before a child care staff can care for children unsupervised:

  • Pediatric First Aid & Pediatric Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR);
  • Prevention of Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS) & Use of Safe Sleep Practices;
  • Prevention and Control of Infectious Diseases (including immunizations);
  • Prevention of and Response to Emergencies due to Food and Allergic Reactions;
  • Prevention of Shaken Baby Syndrome, Abusive Head Trauma, and Child Maltreatment; and
  • Recognition and Reporting of Child Abuse and Neglect (Mandated Reporter Training).

Child care staff do not need to duplicate the six (6) above trainings as those will count towards the PreService health and safety training topics. The child care staff are still required to take the remaining five (5) health and safety topics within the 90 days of hire, which include the following:

  • Administration of Medication, consistent with standards for parental consent
  • Building and Physical Premises Safety, including Identification of and Protection from Hazards, Bodies of Water and Vehicular Traffic
  • Emergency preparedness and response planning for emergencies resulting from a natural disaster, or a man-caused event (such as violence at a child care facility), within the meaning of those terms under section 602(a)(1) of the Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act (42 U.S.C. 5195a(a)(1)) that shall include procedures for evacuation, relocation, shelter-in-place and lock down, staff and volunteer emergency preparedness training and practice drills, communication and reunification with families, continuity of operations, and accommodation of infants and toddlers, children with disabilities, and children with chronic medical conditions
  • Handling and Storage of Hazardous Materials and the Appropriate Disposal of Bio-contaminants
  • Appropriate precautions in Transporting Children

All child care staff in a certified child care program must complete an annual minimum of 12 clock hours of child care PD training. Child care staff hired on or before December 19, 2020, will use that date as their anniversary date to assess compliance with annual minimum of 12 clock hours of child care PD training. Child care staff hired after December 19, 2020, will use their actual hire date to assess compliance with annual minimum of 12 clock hours of child care PD training.

Contact your Regional OCDEL Location

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