My name is Jamie White, and I am a family day home provider in Loudoun County. I have been providing licensed child care since 2005 and currently care for children ages 3 to 5.

I am writing to share my concerns about requiring all programs to purchase and maintain stock EpiPens. The financial cost of this mandate is significant. Stock EpiPens cost $300 to $650 per two-pack and must be replaced every 12 to 18 months. In addition, eMAT certification is expensive and difficult to schedule, since it requires finding an available RN instructor.

Licensed providers are already managing increased expenses, including fingerprinting, lead water testing, CPR and First Aid training, and annual professional development. Adding stock EpiPens to the list makes it harder to stay open. For many small programs like mine, repeated new costs create real pressure to close.

We already maintain prescribed EpiPens for children with diagnosed allergies, and that system works well. If the state believes stock epinephrine is necessary, I ask that it be limited to programs that are not close to emergency medical services or made voluntary with funding and support.

Thank you for considering how this mandate would affect licensed family day homes. I appreciate the opportunity to share my perspective.

Sincerely,
Jamie White
Play to Learn Preschool
Leesburg, VA