Emergency/Backup Family Care

For emergencies such as sick caregiver, help after a medical procedure, school closures & more.

Use backup care with Bright Horizons when a lapse in regular caregiving arrangements would prevent you from working. This could be a sick caregiver, needing help after a medical procedure, a shift change or if your school or daycare is closed. You can reserve care for a child, an adult, or yourself.

You have access to 20 backup care uses each calendar year. Unused days do not roll over to the following year.
You may reserve any type of care on the same day care is needed, or up to 60 days in advance.
The person receiving care can be anyone for whom you have caregiving responsibilities. They do not have to be your legal dependent.

You are eligible for Backup Care benefits if you are:

A regular faculty member with an appointment of 50% or more of the required full-time faculty workload.
A regular staff employee whose standard work schedule is 20 or more hours per week.
A postdoctoral associate; or postdoctoral research scholar who receives payments from WashU.
A clinical fellow who receives payments from WashU.
A full-time graduate or professional student.
A WashU Medical School Resident.

How to Use Backup Care

After you’ve registered, log in here to reserve care. Click on the tile for the type of care you need and follow the prompts. You can also reserve care by calling 1-877-242-2737 or by downloading and using the Bright Horizons mobile app. (You may not reserve Reimbursable Care on the phone app.)

Three options for Backup care for a child:

Care at a quality childcare center. Co-pay is $20/day for one child and $30/day for two or more children.
Care in your home. Bright Horizons sends an experienced, screened caregiver to your home. Co-pay is $7/hour, with a four-hour minimum.
Reimbursable Care. Effective Jan. 1, 2025, employees will be reimbursed $100 for each day of use. For detailed instructions on using Reimbursable Care, please click here. (Immediate family members may not be paid caregivers.) Please note: You must reserve Reimbursable Care before care occurs. This can include the morning of the day when care will be needed.
- Effective Jan. 1, 2025, there is a new caregiver verification process for reimbursements.

Two options for care for an older adult or for yourself.

Care in your home, or the home of the older adult, provided by an experienced, screened caregiver sent by Bright Horizons. Co-pay is $7/hour, with a four-hour minimum.
*An additional fee could be added if the care recipient requires medical care beyond homemaker or companion services.
Reimbursable Care. Effective Jan. 1, 2025, employees will be reimbursed $100 for each day of use. For detailed instructions on using Reimbursable Care, please click here. (Immediate family members may not be paid caregivers.) Please note: You must reserve Reimbursable Care before care occurs. This can include the morning of the day when care will be needed.
- Effective Jan. 1, 2025, there is a new caregiver verification process for reimbursements.

Caregiver Verification Process for Reimbursements

Starting January 1, 2025, Bright Horizons requires caregiver verification before processing your reimbursement request. Here’s what you need to know:

When you submit a request:

You’ll receive an email about the verification requirement.
Your caregiver will receive an email asking them to verify they provided care.

Timeline and notifications

Day 1: Initial emails sent.
Day 3: If no response, your caregiver receives two reminder emails.
Day 7: If still no response, you’ll receive a notification about your pending request.
Day 9: You’ll receive an alert that your request needs caregiver verification within one day.
Days 10-12: Three-day grace period for caregiver response.
Day 13: Final decision
- If verified: Your reimbursement will be processed.
- If not verified: Your request will be canceled, and you’ll receive a confirmation email.

In summary, your caregiver has 9 days to verify the care services, followed by a 3-day grace period. You’ll receive notifications at each step, and by day 13, your request will be either approved or canceled.

Important: Communications about caregiver verification will be sent from noreply@brighthorizons.com. Please add this email address to your safe senders list to ensure you receive all notifications.

Tax Implications

Any taxable wages attributable to the utilization of backup care will be reported on your W-2 for the year. Please consult your tax advisor for guidance. The fair market value for child backup care services is $150 per day, minus any copays.