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Madison County reports roughly $5.5M in COVID grants; contact tracing funded and reemployment training awarded
Summary
The county Health Department described three COVID grants totaling about $5.5 million — including a $4.9 million contact tracing grant — and county workforce officials said a nearly $1.5 million Dislocated Worker grant will fund short-term training for about 100 displaced workers.
MADISON COUNTY, Ill. — Madison County health and workforce officials reported multiple federal and state grants that will fund COVID response activities and reemployment training.
Toni Corona of the Health Department told the county board the department received three grants totaling about $5.5 million. She said a $132,000 early response grant has been fully expended; a $4.9 million Illinois Department of Public Health contact tracing grant (through May 31, 2021) funded the bulk of newly hired contact tracers; and the county’s share of a state 'CURE' allocation amounted to about $493,000 and must be spent by Dec. 31, 2020. "Today, we logged our 10,000th contact to a case since this has started," Corona told the board, underscoring local contact tracing workload since the county’s first case in March.
Separately, Tony Fuhrmann described a Dislocated Worker Emergency Reemployment Grant for just under $1.5 million to be administered through the state and used for short‑term employer‑oriented training. The grant will train about 100 dislocated workers in the nine‑county Southwestern Illinois Economic Development Region (75 in Madison County and 25 in St. Clair County), run through March 31, 2022, and use SIU Edwardsville as a training provider. Fuhrmann said participants will receive six to 12 weeks of training, may take remedial math or science before occupational badges, and will be eligible for $1,000 in support services while in training. Employers that hire graduates may qualify for on‑the‑job training funds that cover 50% of wages for the first six months.
Why it matters: The grants finance the county’s public‑health response and workforce recovery amid the pandemic. The contact tracing grant supports continued case investigation and quarantine outreach, and the reemployment grant is designed to move long‑term unemployed residents into employer-validated skill tracks.
What the board heard: County officials tied the grants to personnel and vendor expenditures already occurring in 2020 and noted that some funds will roll into the county’s FY2021 budget. Board members asked for eligibility details and program mechanics; officials said funds may cover personnel, operational and client support costs and provided program timelines.
