As an in-home daycare provider, I believe that requiring me to supply and maintain an EpiPen creates significant financial, medical, and legal risks. The cost of purchasing and carrying the proper insurance for an EpiPen is high, and the liability is even higher. If an EpiPen is administered incorrectly, or if a child has an unknown allergy to the medication itself, it could cause serious harm or even death. In such a situation, the responsibility would fall directly on me as the provider, which is an unfair and overwhelming burden for a small in-home childcare program.

Furthermore, mandating that I supply an EpiPen would increase my operating costs. This would force me to raise tuition, which would make my small in-home daycare less competitive compared to large childcare centers. In-home providers already care for a very limited number of children, and our budgets and ratios are very different from centers. If I were responsible for 20 or more children, I might understand the requirement but with very small group sizes, it is not reasonable to place this level of responsibility on an in-home provider.

For these reasons, I strongly opposed and I do not believe that supplying or maintaining an EpiPen should be required for in-home daycare providers.