D.C.’s supply of resources to deal with coronavirus pandemic ‘unprecedented’

The Trump administration says it has provided an “unprecedented” amount of resources, including ventilators and personal protective equipment, to the District to help the nation’s capital deal with the coronavirus pandemic.

According to a newly released White House document, the Federal Emergency Management Agency has given the District $60.9 million to combat COVID-19, as well as 50 ventilators and more than 968,000 items of personal protective equipment (PPE) such as N95 masks, gloves, gowns and face shields.

Through public-private partnerships with the Trump administration, the District has received an additional combined quantity of 36.2 million gloves, masks, gowns and face shields, as well as support from the the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to expand the city’s hospital capacity.

“Thanks to President Trump’s leadership, the District of Columbia has received significant federal resources to appropriately respond to and slow the spread of COVID-19,” a White House official told The Washington Times. “The President will continue to direct this unprecedented level of critical support to help D.C. effectively protect healthcare workers and first responders, and save American lives.”

In March, D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser thumped the federal response to the pandemic in the city, specifically criticizing Congress for declaring the District a territory and providing it only $495 million in relief funding in the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. States received $1.25 billion.

On Tuesday, Christopher Rodriguez, director of the D.C. Homeland Security and Emergency Management Agency, acknowledged the federal government’s support, while noting that the “District’s emergency response capabilities were well-developed prior to the outbreak of COVID-19.

“The federal support we have received to date from FEMA, the US Department of Health and Human Services, and other programs have aided our ability to respond to the current crisis,” Mr. Rodriguez said in a written statement. “We will continue to advocate to the federal government for the District’s funding and supply needs. As we recover from COVID-19, additional federal financial support to the District of Columbia will be critical.”

“To date, FEMA has filled most of our requests and continues to fill additional requests based on its assessments of immediate needs,” Mr. Rodriguez added.

As of April 27, the U.S. Department of Housing and Human Services has distributed more than $150.8 million via the Provider Relief Fund, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention funding and grants to the District, local organizations and authorities, according to the White House document.

The funding includes $7.8 million for eight local groups, such as Bread for the City and the Whitman Walker Clinic, and $96.2 million for medical providers in the District.

Last Friday, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development awarded the D.C. Housing Authority $9.1 million to help low-income residents in public housing to pay for child care, to buy PPE and to cover costs related to preventing the spread of the coronavirus.

Under the CARES Act, HUD gave the District $15.3 million for services and projects such as constructing medical facilities, building emergency homeless shelters, providing hotel rooms for people experiencing homelessness and assisting residents who test positive for HIV/AIDS.

The U.S. Small Business Association issued $1.2 billion in low-interest loans to over 3,200 local businesses and also $14.5 million in Economic Injury Disaster Loans of $10,000, which do not need to be repaid, under the CARES Act.

The U.S. Department of Transportation granted about $535 million to the District to respond to public transit challenges in the pandemic, and the U.S. Department of Justice allocated more than $5.9 million to respond to the pandemic in law enforcement and corrections settings.

President Trump said all of these measures are a part of “a massive federal response unlike anything our country has ever seen.”