Van Hollen, Maryland Congressional Delegation Applauds Biden Approval of Hazard Mitigation Resources to Support COVID-19 Recovery

U.S. Senators Chris Van Hollen and Ben Cardin and Congressmen Steny H. Hoyer, Dutch Ruppersberger, John P. Sarbanes, Kweisi Mfume, Andy Harris, M.D., Anthony G. Brown, Jamie B. Raskin and David Trone (all Md.) today applauded President Joe Biden for granting their request to the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) for federal disaster assistance through the Hazard Mitigation Grant Program (HMGP) that will strengthen emergency preparedness and mitigation efforts for future public health emergencies. 

“This new amendment to Maryland’s COVID-19 disaster declaration will shore up necessary resources for our state to effectively respond to and prevent future pandemics and public health crises,” the lawmakers said. “We appreciate the Biden administration’s federal partnership with Maryland and will continue working to strengthen our public health infrastructure to keep our residents safe and healthy.” 

This new approval by the Biden administration would amend the previous disaster declaration to expand eligibility, to now include all areas in Maryland, for federal assistance under HMGP. With this amendment, resources may be used to manage and prevent surge capacity in hospitals, strengthen education outreach efforts, bolster our supply chain, and more. 

More information about HMGP can be found here.