As part of the Biden-Harris Administration’s ongoing COVID-19 response efforts, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) will invest more than $1.6 billion from the American Rescue Plan to support testing and mitigation measures in high-risk congregate settings to prevent the spread of COVID-19 and detect and stem potential outbreaks.  

As COVID-19 cases rise among unvaccinated people and where the more transmissible Delta virus variant is surging, this funding will expand activities to detect, diagnose, trace, and monitor infections and mitigate the spread of COVID-19 in homeless shelters; treatment and recovery facilities; domestic violence shelters; and federal, state, and local correctional facilities — some of the hardest hit and highest risk communities across the country.

“As we continue the vaccination program to get more Americans protected, it is important that we double down on our efforts to increase testing especially in vulnerable communities,” says HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra. “Thanks to the American Rescue Plan, we can make sure high-risk environments like correctional facilities and shelters for those experiencing homelessness have greater capacity for testing to prevent potential outbreaks and continue our nation’s progress in moving out of the pandemic.”

For more information, visit HHS.