At the April 27 Controlling Board meeting, The Office of Budget and Management requested Controlling Board approval to increase appropriation for multiple state agencies in fiscal year 2020. This will allow state agencies to use federal funds made available from the Federal Coronavirus Relief Fund under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act, to support state efforts to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The request includes a request to establish appropriation for the office of Budget and Management and increase appropriation for the Adjutant General’s Department, the Department of Administrative Services, the Ohio Department of Health, and the and Department of Public Safety/Emergency Management Agency for expenditures anticipated for each agency responding to the pandemic through May 11, 2020.
Planned expenditures include:
ADJ ($2,250,000) – Planning and construction costs to establish multiple temporary medical facilities across the state to supplement existing hospital capacity, pay allowance cost for approximately 750 Ohio National Guard and State Defense Force members on state active duty, personal protective equipment, vehicles and motor fuel to support personnel
DAS ($11,700,000) – Personal protective equipment, including 17 million N95 masks
DOH ($11,907,000) – Specimen collection kits to collect samples for COVID-19 testing, medications to combat COVID-19, laboratory overtime, temporary staffing, supplies, ventilator maintenance, distribution of testing materials and medicines, technology development to alert users to localized outbreaks, data analysis contract to help determine when mitigation efforts can be lifted/eased to aid in the economic recovery with focused analysis on identifying vulnerable populations for resource targeting
DPS ($52,450,000) – Personal protective equipment including masks, gloves, gowns, shoe covers, and face shields for distribution to county EMAs, hospitals, and other medical facilities, costs associated with state Emergency Operations Center activation
OBM ($35,000,000) – Reimburse eligible COVID-19 response expenses incurred by state agencies not receiving stand-alone appropriations
At the April 20 meeting, The Ohio Department of Health (ODH) asked Controlling Board to release $8,556,587 in Public Health Emergency Preparedness after the CDC provided additional funding for the coronavirus pandemic. ODH plans to use the funds to support the efforts of the state’s local health departments in providing services related to monitoring, investigation, containment, and mitigation ($4,788,843). The funds will also be used to distribute throughout the state specimen collection kits for COVID-19 lab testing ($1,289,304), and make available medication to providers to combat COVID-19 ($1,289,303). ODH is proposing to use $1,189,137 in National Bioterrorism Hospital Preparedness Program funding to support the urgent preparedness and response needs of hospitals and front-line workers and set aside funding for the state’s Special Pathogen Treatment Center.
Previously, Controlling Board met and approved the creation of an “Ohio Coronavirus Relief Fund,” which allows state agencies to use funds from the federal CARES Act. The fund allocated $76 million to the Ohio Department of Administrative Services to purchase 2,000 ventilators and 5 million N-95 masks. The Department of Public Safety was allocated $50 million for personal protective equipment to be dispersed to county emergency management agencies, hospitals and other medical facilities. $39 million will be used for supplies for specimen collections, different testing kit materials, and lab equipment for testing allocated to the Ohio Department of Health. The Ohio Adjutant General was allocated $8.8 million to pay for operating costs for temporary medical facilities and 600 National Guard and service members.
