AUGUSTA (AP) — Maine parents can now get a more accurate assessment of the day care centers where they are thinking of sending their children.

The state Department of Health and Human Services on Monday unveiled an updated online database of the state’s child care providers, correcting deficiencies in a previous version.

The older version did not display the inspection reports and contained outdated information, including high rankings for at least one day care center where children were abused.

The change comes after a series of stories in the Portland Press Herald (http://bit.ly/1s107fW ) revealed that the state’s day care database provided inadequate and outdated information on quality rankings and licensing information.

Agency officials say the new database — www.childcarechoices.me — was under development for months and cost $23,000.