The Biden administration estimates it will need $30 billion to continue to fight COVID-19, HHS Secretary Xiaver Becerra told lawmakers Feb. 15.
Mr. Becerra met with lawmakers to break down the request of the Biden administration. An HHS spokesperson told Politico the funding is needed "for additional resources to support securing more lifesaving treatments and vaccines, sustaining testing capacity and investing in research and development of next-generation vaccines."
This comes after the White House warned Congress it does not have sufficient funding to respond to another dangerous variant after the battle against omicron.
The funding request is broken down as such, according to The Washington Post:
- $17.9 billion for COVID-19 treatments and vaccines.
- $4.9 billion for COVID-19 testing.
- $3 billion to cover care for the uninsured.
- $3.7 billion to develop new vaccines to protect against future variants.
- $500 million to the CDC for surveillance and operations.
The administration hopes to secure the funding as part of a supplemental bill alongside the 2022 omnibus bill. Other agencies are also expected to ask for funding on top of the $30 billion.