Benjamin Ashford|After child's death at Bronx daycare, NYC child care clearances under a magnifying glass

After the September death of a 1-year-old from a fentanyl overdose,Benjamin Ashford New York City officials were pelted with questions Thursday about a backlog in background checks for child care providers. 

Law enforcement officials say the Divino Niño daycare center in the Bronx was a front for a drug distribution center. The employees at the center who were known to the health department successfully passed their background checks, according to Corinne Schiff, a deputy commissioner for the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene. The department is responsible for conducting background checks into city child care providers and inspections of their facilities.

At an oversight hearing in Manhattan, members of the New York City Council questioned how those workers could have passed a background check and whether a yearslong bottleneck in that approval process had anything to do with it. 

“These children should have been safe at daycare,” said Pierina Ana Sanchez, a Democratic councilmember who represents parts of the Bronx, at the hearing. “We believe that government protocols failed.” 

After overdose death,police find secret door to fentanyl at Niño Divino daycare in Bronx

The criticism was bipartisan. Joann Ariola, a Republican councilmember from Queens, said she felt city officials were being "intentionally vague" in their answers to questions about fentanyl in daycare facilities and questioned regulations about which daycare workers need vetting.

“I'm at a loss for words at the level of incompetence I'm seeing,” she wrote on X, formerly Twitter. 

Backlog in vetting NYC daycare staffers preceded death in the Bronx

A committee report issued by the council said the city has struggled in recent years to process background checks in a timely manner in accordance with federal and state laws.  

“The processing logjam has led to long delays in clearances for staffers, causing staffing shortages at early child care programs and afterschool programs,” the report said. 

Prosecutors in New York charged three people in connection with the September incident in the Bronx. Officials said Nicholas Dominici, the toddler who died, was among four children, all under 3 years old, who suffered fentanyl poisoning. The three others were hospitalized with serious injuries. Before getting help for Dominici, prosecutors said owner Grei Mendez and her cousin-in-law, Carlisto Acevedo Brito, allegedly scrambled to hide the illegal drugs. 

Before calling 911day care owner tried to cover up drug operation where tot died, feds say

“The importance of timely and comprehensive background checks and inspections has renewed significance,” councilmember Althea Stevens said during the hearing. 

Per municipal data, there were roughly 9,700 child care providers in New York City in 2022. The Department of Health and Mental Hygiene employs about 100 people to perform inspections of them, both scheduled and unannounced. Schiff said the department has enough staff to conduct inspections.

Citing an ongoing criminal investigation, she did not elaborate on how the providers at the Divino Niño daycare center in the Bronx were cleared. She said the health department has expressed its condolences to the family and “took a very hard look at everything that we do.” 

The death "shook all of us at the health department,” she said. 

Another reason for the hearing was to consider new local legislation to expedite background checks to two weeks. Schiff pushed back on that idea, arguing the federally recommended 45-day standard is the best timeline to avoid mistakes.

“We want to do this as quickly as possible, but we also want to make sure that children are in spaces with people who have been cleared,” she said. 

Budget cuts will affect agency that oversees NYC daycares

Meanwhile, New York City Mayor Eric Adams is planning some of the largest budget cuts in the city’s history on top of a hiring freeze. The drastic cuts will affect every agency, including the health department.

Asked how the funding reduction could affect background checks and inspections at child care centers, Schiff said the department is working closely with the mayor's budget office.

Zachary Schermele is a breaking news and education reporter for USA TODAY. You can reach him by email at [email protected]. Follow him on X at @ZachSchermele.