Rep. Bobby L. Rush (D-IL) introduced Friday legislation initiating a $100 million grant program administered by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to mobilize coronavirus testing and contact tracing.
COVID-19 Testing, Reaching and Contacting Everyone (TRACE) Act grantees would include community health centers, school-based health centers, academic medical centers, non-profits, and other entities hiring and training individuals to operate mobile testing units while addressing outreach hot spots and medically underserved areas.
“Reopening our economy and getting back to normal will be all but impossible if we do not step up our testing efforts and implement robust and widespread contact tracing,” Rush said. “Until we have a vaccine to defeat this dreaded disease, contact tracing in order to understand the full breadth and depth of the spread of this virus is the only way we will be able to get out from under this.”
The legislation focuses on developing mobile testing units and implementation using safe door-to-door outreach, with special preference being given to entities committed to hiring from the neighborhoods.
“I am immensely proud to see this bill receive bipartisan support, and I hope to see the COVID-19 TRACE Act swiftly adopted by the House as a stand-alone bill or as part of a larger coronavirus response package,” Rush said.