As North Carolina recovers from the Covid-19 pandemic, our state ranked as the 10th worst state in the nation in infant mortality in 2021, and about one in six children is facing hunger. Additionally, thousands of children in North Carolina spend months or years in the foster care system. North Carolina is also in the middle of a child care crisis. Last year, 278 child care facilities closed in North Carolina. The North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services this week released an update to its Early Childhood Action Plan to address key actions the department is taking to improve early childhood development in North Carolina.