The Federal Emergency Management Agency will be sending almost $3.2 million to the Commonwealth of Massachusetts to reimburse the Boston Public Health Commission for the cost of providing testing during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The $3,189,657 Public Assistance grant will reimburse the Boston Public Health Commission for the cost of contracting for mobile COVID-19 testing units between July 2022 and May 2023.
That included setting up local testing sites, test registration, interpreter services, educational resources and performing 19,484 COVID-19 PCR tests and providing test results.
“FEMA is pleased to be able to assist the Boston Public Health Commission with these costs,” said FEMA Region 1 Regional Administrator Lori Ehrlich. “Reimbursing state, county, and municipal governments – as well as eligible non-profits and tribal entities – for the costs incurred during the COVID-19 pandemic is an important part of our nation’s ongoing recovery.”
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 $2.6 billion in Public Assistance grants to Massachusetts to reimburse the commonwealth for pandemic-related expenses.