Childcare CPR & first aid requirements
First Aid & CPR Alabama
If you work in childcare in Alabama — whether at a daycare, preschool, home-based care, or camp — first aid and CPR certification is not optional. It's a licensing requirement, and for good reason: children are among the most vulnerable to choking, allergic reactions, and injuries. Being prepared to respond can mean everything.
What Alabama requires
Alabama's Minimum Standards for Child Care Centers, administered by the Department of Human Resources, require at least one staff member aged nineteen or older to hold a current infant-and-child (pediatric) CPR certificate and a current first aid certificate during every hour the center is open. The standards call for hands-on skills, so a course completed entirely online will not qualify, though a blended course that pairs online coursework with an in-person skills check does. Cards are kept current on the certifying program's cycle, commonly every two years.
Anaphylaxis and medication administration
Alabama centers may give prescription or over-the-counter medication only with the parent's written, signed authorization, and every medication must be kept in locked storage a child cannot reach. There is no statewide stock-epinephrine mandate yet: a newly enacted law will require an anaphylaxis-response policy and staff anaphylaxis training only at centers serving more than twelve children, phasing in with training due by August 2027 and the policy by January 2028. As best practice, any child with a known severe allergy should have an epinephrine auto-injector on site and a written care plan the whole team knows.
How our courses meet these requirements
A recognized, standards-based certification — online theory paired with a hands-on skills check — meets Alabama’s requirement and keeps your team ready to act.
Don't wait for renewal day
A choking toddler or a child who has stopped breathing cannot wait for help to arrive; the person who acts in those first moments is whoever is already in the room. Certification puts that responsibility in prepared hands, reassures the families who trust you each morning, and keeps your center comfortably within the state's standards. A recognized course that combines online lessons with an in-person skills session satisfies the requirement while respecting a caregiver's busy day.