HHS on April 8 awarded more than $1.3 billion to 1,387 health centers across the U.S. The funding, distributed through the Health Resources and Services Administration, will support the health centers' efforts to detect, prevent, diagnose and treat COVID-19.
The funding was provided under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, which President Donald Trump signed into law on March 27. The health center funding will be available immediately, according to HHS.
"Increasingly, people are turning to health centers for the first line of defense in combating emergency public health priorities like the novel coronavirus," HRSA Administrator Tom Engels said. "Health centers will put these resources to immediate use to respond to emerging and evolving local needs and continue to deliver high quality primary health care services to their patients."