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Biden administration to spend $1.4 billion aimed at schools

The Biden administration says it will spend more than $1.4 billion to boost testing supplies and coordination as U.S. officials aim to return more students to the classroom.

Joe Biden

US President Joe Biden signs executive orders in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, after his inauguration as the 46th President of the United States. Photo: Reuters

AP Washington

The Biden administration says it will spend more than $1.4 billion to boost testing supplies and coordination as U.S. officials aim to return more students to the classroom.

The White House says it will spend $815 million to increase U.S. manufacturing of testing supplies that have been subject to frequent shortages for months, including materials used in laboratories and for rapid point-of-care tests.

Officials also announced $650 million to setup regional testing hubs around the country to help coordinate testing at K-8 schools, universities, homeless shelters and other gathering places.

The U.S. failure to provide fast, widespread testing is one of the most enduring stumbles in the federal government's response to COVID-19. As a candidate, Biden said his administration would deliver free, comprehensive testing at a national scale. He has asked Congress to provide $50 billion for testing in the stimulus bill before lawmakers.

 

(Only the headline and picture of this report may have been reworked by the Business Standard staff; the rest of the content is auto-generated from a syndicated feed.)

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First Published: Feb 18 2021 | 12:46 AM IST

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