FEMA APPROVES $5.6 MILLION FOR THE PUERTO RICO DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH
[https://www.fema.gov/press-release/20201210/fema-approves-56-million-puerto-rico-department-health]


Release Date: 
Desanm 10, 2020 

GUAYNABO, PUERTO RICO— A $5.6 MILLION injection of funds approved to
the Puerto Rico Department of Health by the Federal Emergency
Management Agency (FEMA) is aimed at repairing health facilities
throughout the island. The improvement plans range from diagnostic and
treatment centers to laboratories and public health units in six
municipalities.

This amount, approved this year, adds to the total of about $8 MILLION
the Agency has awarded for the Department of Health so far for 14
permanent repair projects to strengthen the health sector.

“With these funding obligations we contribute to the rehabilitation
of various facilities of Puerto Rico's public health system around the
island to facilitate the accessibility of these essential services to
all citizens,” said the Federal Disaster Recovery Coordinator for
Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands, José Baquero Tirado.

Among the recent obligations, is a $1.2 MILLION grant for the
Mayagüez Pediatric Center, which has an epidemiology office. The
facility also houses other offices that provide services to citizens
such as the WIC Program, the Demographic Registry, the Biosecurity
Office, and the Emergency Management Office, among others. The
improvements include mitigation measures to reinforce the windows,
doors and roof of the building to prevent similar damage in future
disasters.

“This federal assistance will give us the opportunity to improve the
facilities of the Mayagüez Pediatric Center and keep the operations
in optimal conditions to offer the quality of service that each
patient deserves. The health of residents is our priority and a right
that we have to respect,” assured the Secretary of Health, Lorenzo
González Feliciano.

On the other hand, the Health Department's hygiene laboratory in
Arecibo, located in a historic building built in 1938, was awarded
nearly $25,000. These funds are destined for repairs to its
bacteriological and chemical labs, among other work.

Similarly, funds were obligated for other health institutions to
repair their facilities and mitigate risks. Among these are Adjuntas'
Diagnostic and Treatment Center (CDT, by its Spanish acronym), with
about $2.5 million; as well as the Transitional Service Centers in
Cayey and Ponce, with about $800,000 and $67,000 respectively.

“Our public health facilities in various sectors will benefit
greatly from this assignment, at a time when we are confirming the
relevance of the services they offer. We thank the healthcare workers
for their great support in these times and hope that this assignment
fulfills the essential purpose of serving our citizens,” said the
executive director of the Central Office for Recovery, Reconstruction
and Resilience (COR3), Ottmar Chávez.

To date, FEMA has obligated nearly $19.4 BILLION for costs related to
hurricanes Irma and María, including projects to help rebuild
infrastructure throughout Puerto Rico. FEMA works with COR3 through
the agency’s Public Assistance program to obligate recovery funds to
private nonprofit organizations, municipalities and agencies of the
Government of Puerto Rico.

For more information on Puerto Rico’s recovery from Hurricane
María, visit fema.gov/disaster/4339
[http://www.fema.gov/disaster/4339] and recuperacion.pr
[http://www.recuperacion.pr/]. Follow us on our social networks at
Facebook.com/FEMAPuertoRico [http://www.facebook.com/femapuertorico],
Facebook.com/COR3pr [http://www.facebook.com/cor3pr] and Twitter
@COR3pr [https://twitter.com/cor3pr].