Here's how to get backup care for a child or adult

During this unprecedented time, many Johns Hopkins employees are challenged with balancing family caregiving and work responsibilities, so the Office of Benefits & Worklife wants to remind you about the family care benefits available to you through Care.com and its Care@Work program that can help support you.

Babysitting and in-home child care are considered essential functions in the state of Maryland; for other states, see your current state guidelines and regulations for care.

Information on what Care@Work is doing to protect both families and caregivers during this time is available here.

Your Care@Work benefits give you short- and long-term services to help you care for your loved ones. Here's a reminder of the benefits available to you.

Care.com membership

You have a premium membership to Care.com, and you can use the website to post a job opportunity or search for a caregiver in your ZIP code to care for children, adult loved ones, or pets; find tutors; and more. Check out the Safety Center for best practices on hiring safely.

Backup Care program for children and adults

Backup Care is the resource to use when your regular care isn't available, especially during this time. Johns Hopkins recently increased the number of available backup care days, giving each faculty and staff member, postdoc, and graduate student 20 days per year. Backup Care is subsidized, meaning you have only a co-pay for the care you receive. Here is the co-pay breakdown:

• $6/hour for those earning less than $40,000
• $8/hour for those earning between $40,000 and $74,999
• $10/hour for those earning $75,000 or more

You can request in-home or in-center backup care for children, or in-home backup care for adults.

In-home backup caregivers are vetted and required to complete orientation and health and safety training. The screening process includes child care reference checks, video or in-person interviews, a criminal background check, a check of the National Sex Offender Public Website, name and address verification by Social Security number, and U.S. work eligibility verification.

Johns Hopkins staff thoroughly vet each child care center before it becomes an approved Backup Care center in its network. Centers must be state licensed, perform criminal background checks on the teachers and staff they employ, check against the National Sex Offender Registry and Central Abuse and Neglect Registry, and confirm eligibility to work in the U.S.

Information and resources

Care.com has created a resource center that provides content you may find helpful. To register, go to johnshopkins.care.com and use your JHED ID (without @jh.edu) to activate your account.

If you have any questions, contact the Johns Hopkins Office of Benefits & Worklife at 410-516-2000 or benefits@jhu.edu.