- President Joe Biden is revitalizing initiatives to transform American life from birth to death.
- Biden intends to have another chance to force more ambitious legislation through Congress.
- The care economy, according to Biden, is “fundamental to who we are as a nation.”
By reducing the cost of child care, increasing the number of preschool programs, and increasing the accessibility of home aides for the elderly, President Joe Biden is revitalizing initiatives to transform American life from birth to death.
Before its two-year standstill on Capitol Hill, Biden’s Build Back Better legislative program included these measures. In his bid for a second term in office, Biden intends to have another chance to force more ambitious legislation through Congress.
Economy care
The care economy plans could be especially effective with women, who are more likely to be employed in low-paying occupations as caregivers or to have their careers interrupted by the need to care for family members.
Biden proposes to invest hundreds of billions of dollars in universal preschool access, government childcare subsidies, paid family leave across the country and in-home care for the elderly and disabled. Nonetheless, there has been a lot of opposition on Capitol Hill from Republicans who claim that Biden’s plans would be very expensive and that he would raise taxes on the rich to pay for them.
An executive order to strengthen the care economy was announced more than a year ago, and Biden’s administration has been working on it. The directive reduced expenses for families receiving federal childcare subsidies and increased salaries for teachers in Head Start programs that are sponsored by the federal government. It also sought to enhance home care for veterans and child care for parents serving in the armed forces.
The care economy, according to Biden, is “fundamental to who we are as a nation.” Democrats were able to get an additional $1 billion for Head Start preschool and childcare payments for low-income families despite legislative obstacles and divided control of Congress.
By addressing the high expenses of child and elder care, the Biden campaign seeks to support the care economy and provide families with additional breathing room. But as he seeks reelection, the Trump campaign has not addressed concerns related to the care economy and has not responded to demands for comment. The administration is working hard to move things along, but more legislative action is required.
In his most recent budget proposal, Biden proposed to allocate funds for the construction of additional preschools as well as significant childcare subsidies for families earning less than $200,000.
