CDC to award COVID-19 assistance funds

The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced last week that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) is awarding $631 million to 64 jurisdictions in support of the COVID-19 response.

“This new funding secured from Congress by President Trump will help public health departments across America continue to battle COVID-19 and expand their capacity for testing, contact tracing, and containment,” HHS Secretary Alex Azar said. “The professionals who staff America’s state, local, tribal, and territorial public health departments have played a vital role in protecting Americans throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, by reporting and analyzing surveillance data, tracing the spread of the virus, and developing scientific guidelines appropriate for local communities.”

Azar said as the nation looks toward reopening the economy, the work of public health officials is only going to get more important, adding the Trump Administration and CDC will be working alongside to assist.

The funds would be used to establish or enhance the ability to aggressively identify cases, conduct contact tracing and follow up, as well as implement appropriate containment measures; improve morbidity and mortality surveillance; enhance testing capacity; control COVID-19 in high-risk settings and protect vulnerable or high-risk populations.

“This infusion of additional funding into the nation’s public health infrastructure will strengthen our capacity to implement tried and true containment measures,” CDC Director Robert R. Redfield, said. “The ability to implement aggressive contact tracing, surveillance, and testing will be fundamental to protecting vulnerable populations as the nation takes steps to reopen, and Americans begin returning to their daily lives.”