On March 11, the Department of Health and Human Services announced the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention would provide $37.7 million in funding to California in support of their response efforts to the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).

“State and local health departments are on the front lines of responding to the COVID-19 outbreak, and we are deeply grateful for their work,” HHS Secretary Alex Azar said. “CDC is distributing this new funding extremely rapidly, as called for by Congress. President [Donald] Trump, and his entire administration will continue working to ensure state and local jurisdictions have the resources they need to keep Americans safe and healthy.”

“The action we are taking today will continue to support their efforts to increase public health capacity where it’s needed most,” CDC Director Dr. Robert R. Redfield said. “These funds will allow public health leaders to implement critical steps necessary to contain and mitigate spread of the virus in communities across the country.”

On Friday, March 6, Trump signed the Coronavirus Preparedness and Response Supplemental Appropriations Act, 2020. The supplemental contains $8.3 billion government-wide, with resources directed for grants or cooperative agreements to states, localities, territories and tribes to accelerate planning and operational readiness for COVID-19 preparedness and response, as well as develop tools and strategies, provide technical assistance and program support, and ensure ongoing communication and coordination among public health agencies and partners throughout the response.

CDC is contacting state health officers to move forward with awarding over $560 million to states, localities, territories and tribes. CDC will use existing networks to reach out to state and local jurisdictions to access this initial funding.

For information, visit cdc­.gov/corona­­virus/2019-ncov/in­dex.html.