NH Delegation Announces Nearly $41 Million in Funding from the American Rescue Plan to Expand COVID-19 Testing in NH Schools

(Washington, DC) – Today, U.S. Senators Jeanne Shaheen (D-NH) and Maggie Hassan (D-NH) and Representatives Annie Kuster (NH-02) and Chris Pappas (NH-01) announced that New Hampshire will receive $40,953,829 from an initial installment of grants established under the American Rescue Plan to help expand COVID-19 testing in New Hampshire and across the country. Specifically, the funding is being awarded by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and will help Granite State schools quickly create and strengthen COVID-19 testing programs to facilitate the reopening process as well as boost testing in underserved populations. In total, the American Rescue Plan contains $47.8 billion for COVID-19 testing, the first $10 billion of which will now be disbursed to states. In this first allotment, New Hampshire received $40,953,829.

Yesterday morning, Senators Shaheen and Hassan met with the First Lady to discuss the importance of funding for New Hampshire schools in the American Rescue Plan. The new law contains an additional $122 billion for American schools through the Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief Fund, from which Granite State schools will receive approximately $350 million. Upon Dr. Biden’s arrival at the Christa McAuliffe School during her visit to New Hampshire later in the day, Representative Kuster welcomed the First Lady.

“Safely reopening our schools is contingent on them receiving the resources and support they need to ramp up COVID-19 testing and other critical mitigation efforts to keep students, staff and families safe. That’s why securing these federal dollars was a priority for me during negotiations on the American Rescue Plan,” said Senator Shaheen. “This funding is a crucial step towards getting our children back in the classroom. It will allow our schools to quickly establish robust testing programs that will help identify cases, ensure treatment and interdict community transmission. I’ll continue to fight in the Senate for the resources our schools need to respond to this pandemic and resume normal operations.”

“Even as we vaccinate more people, COVID-19 testing remains a critical tool to help us get back to normal and return children to the classroom full-time,” Senator Hassan said. “These federal dollars from the American Rescue Plan will go a long way to expand COVID-19 testing where it’s needed most, including our schools and rural communities.”

“The American Rescue Plan meets the demands of this crisis and provides critical resources for our Granite State communities, including this much-needed funding to expand COVID-19 testing,” said Representative Kuster. “Widespread, swift, and accurate COVID-19 testing — in addition to vaccines and precautions including physical distancing and wearing masks — will help to prevent community spread, allowing us to stay one step ahead of this virus so we can safely re-open our schools. There’s a lot of work to be done to recover and rebuild, and these federal funds get us one step closer to crushing this virus, getting students back into classrooms and our economy back on track so no one is left behind.”

“Ensuring our schools reopen safely to full-time, in-person learning is a critical step in overcoming this virus and returning to normal after an unprecedented year of challenges for students, parents, and teachers,” said Representative Pappas. “The American Rescue Plan is already delivering the help we need. This $40 million in federal funds will go a long way to helping facilitate New Hampshire’s school reopening process as well as strengthening testing among our underserved populations.”