FEMA awards millions of dollars to Connecticut hospitals for COVID-19 operating costs 

The Federal Emergency Management Agency will be sending more than $16 million to Hartford hospital and over $2.6 million to Danbury hospital to reimburse COVID-19 operating costs.  

The public assistance grants will cover the costs of purchasing test kits and a wide range of medical products for treating COVID-19 patients and protecting staff between February 2020 and July 2022, according to the press release.  

FEMA’s public assistance program states that they provide grants to state and local governments to recover from major disasters and emergencies. According to their website, in order to be eligible for public assistance funding, the applicant must be a government or private non profit organization, the facility must be a building, public works system, equipment or natural feature, their work must be categorized as an emergency and the cost for the funding must be directly related to the disaster.  

The press release stated that the funds will help Hartford hospital, a 938-bed acute care teaching hospital and tertiary care center, to reimburse the purchased 875,847 PCR tests and antigen COVID-19 tests throughout the pandemic.  

Danbury hospital, the 456-bed acute care hospital which is a part of the Nuvance Health system, will use the money to reimburse the cost spent on tests and food delivery services for hospital staff that were in quarantine, according to the press release. 

Both the Hartford and Danbury hospitals purchased personal protective equipment (PPE) such as N95 masks, medical gloves and medical gowns and supplies such as plexiglass, disinfectants, and thermometers. The $16,035,015 given to Hartford and $2,640,000 given to Danbury will help reimburse the money spent on these supplies as well.  

Lori Ehrlich, FEMA Region 1 Regional administrator, explained how FEMA is happy to be helping Connecticut hospitals recover from the pandemic. 

“FEMA is pleased to be able to assist Hartford [and Danbury] Hospital with these costs,” Ehrlich said. “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 has helped Hartford Hospital with COVID-19 expenses in the past, as they awarded $15.5 million back in November. According to the press release, FEMA has provided more than $649 million in public assistance grants to Connecticut to aid the costs of pandemic related expenses. 

FEMA is an agency of the United States Department of Homeland Security whose stated mission is helping people before, during and after disasters. More information about the FEMA public assistance grants can be found on their website, https://www.fema.gov/assistance/public.