White House Wants Congress to Authorize $46B in Additional Funds to Fight COVID-19

The White House has asked Congress for $45.8B in additional funding for fiscal year 2020 and authorities to facilitate ongoing coronavirus preparedness and response efforts.

Russ Vought, acting director of the Office of Management and Budget, wrote in a Wednesday letter to Congress that the Trump administration wants to amend its FY 2021 requested budget to increase the funding of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to $8.3B.

The White House also wants to raise its FY 2021 proposed budget for the National Institutes of Health’s National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases to $5.8B.

Federal Times reported the White House is requesting nearly $1.8B in funds for federal agencies’ information technology requirements to support employees’ teleworking needs.

The Department of Veterans Affairs asked for $1.2B in funds to back the “quick shift” to telehealth and other technology platforms to facilitate the delivery of health care services amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

“This shift would require upfront investment in information technology resources to support increased use of simultaneous telehealth appointments and upgrade associated bandwidth for employees and healthcare providers,” according to VA’s request.

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