Federal government cancels $49M in Idaho health department grants
In this file photo, signs lead people to a COVID-19 vaccination clinic set up at a park in Caldwell.
Following a directive from President Donald Trump, the federal government terminated about $49.4 million in grants for the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare.
Idaho's canceled grants were among over $12 billion dollars in federal grants the Trump administration terminated following Trump's directive. The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, or HHS, terminated the grants to Idaho's state health department, and other state and local health departments.
An HHS spokesperson said the funds were largely used for COVID-related efforts — including COVID testing, vaccination and global projects. The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention expects to save $11.4 billion, the spokesperson told the Idaho Capital Sun.
'The COVID-19 pandemic is over, and HHS will no longer waste billions of taxpayer dollars responding to a non-existent pandemic that Americans moved on from years ago,' the HHS spokesperson said. 'HHS is prioritizing funding projects that will deliver on President Trump's mandate to address our chronic disease epidemic and Make America Healthy Again.'
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Idaho Department of Health and Welfare spokesperson AJ McWhorter told the Sun that all the canceled grants 'are all pandemic related funding that provided a one-time infusion.'
About $29 million of Idaho's canceled grants were focused on vaccines for children. Almost $13.3 million of Idaho's canceled grants were focused on mental health. Another $6.9 million grant was for substance abuse.
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Idaho spent about $25.8 million of the canceled grants. The federal government had paid Idaho nearly that same amount through the grants so far, HHS's data shows.
HHS terminated Idaho's grants on March 24, according to HHS's public list of all canceled grants.
The grants' cancellation does not affect ongoing Idaho health programs, McWhorter said. The Idaho Department of Health and Welfare is 'executing its exit strategies to minimize any disruptions for the one-time pandemic grants,' he said.
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