CDC withdraws more than $11B in funding that was to help fight Covid-19, spokesperson from HHS says

FILE - A sign marks the entrance to the federal Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in Atlanta, on Oct. 8, 2013. (AP Photo/David Goldman, File)

ATLANTA, GA — The Atlanta-based CDC is withdrawing more than $11B in funding that was to go to state health departments across the nation to help fight Covid-19.

The money was largely used for Covid-19 testing, vaccination, and global projects.

It was also used for a program established in 2021 that addresses Covid health disparities among high-risk and under-served patients, including those in minority populations.

A spokesperson for the Department of Health and Human Services says they will “no longer waste billions of taxpayer dollars responding to a non-existent pandemic that Americans moved on from years ago.”

HHS oversees over a dozen agencies, including the CDC.

Notices went out to health departments this week about the funding cuts. It’s not clear yet how it will impact metro Atlanta health departments.