BOSTON – The Federal Emergency Management Agency will be sending almost $2.8 million to the Commonwealth of Massachusetts to reimburse the Soldiers’ Home in Chelsea for the costs of steps taken to protect residents, staff and the public during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The $2,766,754 Public Assistance grant will reimburse the facility, which offers residential, nursing and long-term care to eligible Massachusetts veterans, for the additional costs of operating safely in a pandemic environment between June 2020 and July 2021.
Steps taken included purchasing personal protective equipment (PPE), isolation gowns, plexiglass barriers and signage, and using both staff and contractors to provide enhanced professional cleaning services.
The Soldiers’ Home in Chelsea also paid for training housekeeping and supervisory staff on COVID-19 cleaning & disinfecting to maintain adherence to strict disinfection protocols of all interior areas within the facility.
“FEMA is pleased to be able to assist the Soldiers’ Home in Chelsea with these costs,” said FEMA Region 1 Regional Administrator Lori Ehrlich. “Providing resources for our partners on the front lines of the pandemic fight is critical to their success, and our success as a nation.”
FEMA’s Public Assistance program is an essential source of funding for states and communities recovering from a federally declared disaster or emergency.
So far, FEMA has provided more than $1.5 billion in Public Assistance grants to Massachusetts to reimburse the commonwealth for pandemic-related expenses.