KinderCare, the Portland-based operator of 1,500 daycare centers in 40 states, said it will temporarily shut more than two-thirds of its centers because of the coronavirus pandemic.

It said it will refocus more than 400 centers to provide childcare for first responders, healthcare workers and families that work in essential services. It could reopen more depending on demand.

The company employs about 36,000 teachers and serves 186,000 children every day. It did not say how many of those employees and children would be affected.

“The families in our country are facing a crisis of significant proportion, and we’re prioritizing our services to support those families who are on the front lines of battling this threat,” said Tom Wyatt, CEO of KinderCare Education.

The company says it is going city-by-city to identify centers that operate in areas with large numbers of families who work as first responders, healthcare providers, and in other essential services. Those centers that remain open will serve families currently enrolled and those who work in emergency and medical services. KinderCare Education at Work centers at medical facilities will remain open as well. The company said it has engaged an independent medical adviser to provide health and safety guidelines for all centers that will remain open.

-- Ted Sickinger; tsickinger@oregonian.com; 503-221-8505; @tedsickinger

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