CDC Announces $3 Billion for Public Health Infrastructure, Workforce, and Data Systems

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recently issued a grant opportunity forecast for $3 billion in American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds to improve critical public health infrastructure needs. The investment, according to the CDC, will help ensure that U.S. public health systems are ready to respond to public health emergencies like COVID-19 and meet the evolving and complex needs of communities and populations they serve.

The funding program will help to address the historic underinvestment in the county’s public health system and in communities that are economically or socially marginalized, rural communities, and communities with people from racial and ethnic minority groups. The funding will provide cross-cutting support to public health agencies for critical infrastructure needs related to workforce, foundational capabilities, data modernization, and physical infrastructure. Investments in these areas are anticipated to have lasting effects on public health capacity and systems across the country and will help public health agencies transform to meet the evolving and complex needs of the U.S. population.

The grant submission period is estimated to open on April 14, 2022, and close June 13, 2022. The award floor is currently proposed at $2.5 million with a maximum of $150 million.

Additional information from the CDC is available here.