And so, especially since the 1960's, several federal food assistance programs are now in place to provide a safety net for needy families including SNAP, National School Breakfast and Lunch, the Summer Food Service Program, the Child and Adult Care Food Program, and WIC.

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There are the lower income components of the Child and Adult Care Food Program, the Emergency Food Assistance Program, and the Commodity Supplemental Food Program (CSFP).

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There are many ways this could be dealt with from a policy perspective -- through the Women Infants and Children program, the SNAP program, Child Care Subsidies, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families -- the list goes on.

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Steinhardt also turned the basement of her home into a child care center, allowing parents in her program to go back to school at night.

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Backup child care is a fast-growing employee benefits program -- and it's easy to see why.

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The federal government also provides means tested assistance through multiple programs for child care, education, job training, and the Low Income Energy Assistance Program (LIHEAP), the Social Services Block Grant, the Community Services Block Grant, and the Legal Services Corporation, among other programs.

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