Diaper costs are on the rise. What does that mean for families in need?

Did you know the price of diapers has reportedly risen 48% since the COVID-19 pandemic? The drastic increase is a heavy burden for families with babies and toddlers, costing parents as much as $1,000 per child per year, according to a report by the National Diaper Bank Network (NDBN).

The issue becomes even more urgent when you consider the consequences of not having a steady supply of diapers at home: The NDBN cites unaffordability of diapers as a potential barrier to essential early childhood learning as well as a detriment to parents' steady employment. On a national scale, 25% of parents with diaper need reported having to miss an average of five days of work or school in a month because they could not provide enough diapers to meet the requirement of their childcare or preschool facility. 

Diaper access and affordability is an issue that hits close to home at the Healthy Start Coalition of Okeechobee. In 2024, we served 289 families with babies and toddlers through our in-home visitation program. Our annual Cover That Pumpkin Diaper Drive provides free diapers to approximately 41% of these families – and in total, Healthy Start distributed more than 34,000 diapers that year! 

While we are immensely proud of this achievement and grateful for the community support that made it possible, unfortunately, it means more than half of our clients’ needs remained unmet. 

We rely on the support of the entire community to help fill this gap and ensure every Okeechobee baby and toddler is clean, healthy, and dry. This year, our "Golden Pumpkin" Sponsor is a local car wash, Brahman Carwash, who supports our rural community's families and our nonprofit's mission of ensuring every baby has a Healthy Start Please consider supporting the Cover That Pumpkin Diaper Drive by making a donation online today.