Press Releases

WASHINGTON – Congressman Ron Estes (R-Kansas) released the following statement after the Trump administration awarded $81,278,558 to Kansas for increased testing. This is part of the $11 billion for testing from the CARES Act. 
 
"The United States is leading the world when it comes to testing, with more total tests and more tests per capita than any other nation," said Rep. Estes. "We continue to ramp up testing for the health of our citizens, and the additional $81,278,558 for Kansas will help us safely reopen." 
 
Rep. Estes voted for the CARES Act which includes funding for testing. All states have also received initial shipments of swabs, with Kansas receiving 60,000 this month. The United States has completed more than nine million tests, with as many as 314,000 tests a day last week. 
 
In addition to today's announcement of $81,278,558 for testing, the state of Kansas has received $1.25 billion specifically for state, territorial, local and tribal governments. Kansans have also received $1,980,223,913 in Economic Impact Payments as of May 8. During the first and second rounds of the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), $5,162,470,043 has been approved for 47,351 Kansas small businesses in the form of forgivable loans as of May 8. The Joint Economic Committee estimates that 427,000 Kansans will be able to keep their jobs due to PPP. On March 27, Unemployment Insurance (UI) was increased by $600 a week and eligibility was extended to self-employed individuals. Additionally, hospitals received $325 million in aid, community health centers received $15 million in grants, public universities received $49 million from the Higher Education Relief Fund, the Kansas Department of Labor (KSDOL) received $9.5 million for administrative costs, and Medicaid funding to Kansas was increased by $220 million. More funding has been assigned to Kansas through Department of Health and Human Services grants, Department of Housing and Urban Development grants, Department of Justice grants, Department of Transportation grants, Department of Agriculture programs, and more. 
  
Ron Estes is a 5th generation Kansan and represents Kansas’ 4th Congressional District in the U.S. House of Representatives. He serves on the House Committee on Ways and Means.