Washington, D.C. - Energy and Commerce Committee Republican Leader Greg Walden (R-OR), Health Subcommittee Republican Leader Dr. Michael Burgess (R-TX), and Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee Republican Leader Brett Guthrie (R-KY) commended the Department of Health and Human Services’ (HHS) for releasing state COVID-19 testing plans for July through December.
“We appreciate the transparency HHS continues to provide as the agency works around the clock to fight this virus. In releasing the July through December state testing plans, it’s clear to see that states are working closely with the federal government to develop and implement testing plans. States need the flexibility to customize their plans based on their citizens’ needs, not one universal plan dictated from Washington. Even the states we represent - Oregon, Texas, and Kentucky - have varying and evolving testing needs. We hope HHS continues this pattern of transparency, and we’ll continue to work to boost COVID-19 testing and make sure resources are getting to communities that need it the most," said Walden, Burgess, and Guthrie.
On Aug. 10, HHS released testing plans that states submitted for July through December.
On August 7, HHS announced around $5 billion of the Provider Relief Fund will go to nursing homes for testing and PPE, among other resources to protect nursing home residents.
In June, after months of research and interviews with public health officials, E&C Republicans released their first pillar of the Second Wave Preparedness Project. This pillar provided a number of testing and surveillance recommendations.
