Paid Leave and Universal Child Care Could Boost U.S. GDP by $1 Trillion

Providing childcare and paid leave to parents of young children would be a boon for the U.S. economy, according to a new report by Moody’s Corp.

The research, released on International Women’s Day, projected that policies such as paid family leave and universal pre-kindergarten could result in a $1 trillion boost to gross domestic product by 2028. Moody’s, best known for its sovereign credit ratings, forecasts U.S. GDP could reach $23 trillion by 2028 without changes, but could top out at $24 trillion if women between the ages of 25 and 54 were able to participate in the workforce at the same rate they do in countries that have those support systems in place, such as the U.K., Germany, Sweden and Australia.