Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senator Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.) announced that the American Rescue Plan will provide the state of Nevada with $92.7 million in April to support COVID-19 screening testing for teachers, staff and students so Nevada schools can continue to re-open safely for in-person instruction.
“Nevada’s children need safe, in-person instruction after a year of uncertainty, and I worked to secure this funding to make sure we can reopen our schools as quickly and safely as possible. This is about making sure our classrooms are safe, and these federal dollars will provide teachers, staff, parents, and students with critical resources necessary to return to normal as we work to finally overcome this virus. I’ll continue to work to provide Nevada’s schools with the resources they need to safely re-open their doors while protecting the health of staff and students.”
With this American Rescue Plan funding, states can implement screening testing programs that will be vital to the continued safety and speed of school re-openings. In addition to ensuring diagnostic testing of symptomatic and exposed individuals, serial screening testing will help schools identify infected individuals without symptoms who may be contagious so that prompt action can be taken to prevent further transmission. The funding will also allow Nevada health departments to provide technical assistance to help schools stand up and implement these robust testing programs.
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