Lawmakers ask for investigation on alleged redirection of COVID-19 funds

Two Democratic associates of the Senate and Home Armed Companies Committees are formally requesting that the Section of Protection Inspector Typical look into experiences that the Pentagon redirected hundreds of thousands and thousands of bucks meant for COVID-19 response to protection contractors for “jet motor sections, entire body armor and gown uniforms,” in accordance to the letter. 

United States Senator Elizabeth Warren, (D-Mass.), a member of the Senate Armed Companies Committee and Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Calif.), a member of the Home Armed Companies and Oversight and Reform Committees, despatched the letter dated September 25 to Sean O’Donnell, Acting Inspector Typical, Section of Protection.

They requested O’Donnell to look into experiences that the Pentagon redirected money from the Protection Generation Act meant for COVID-19 response to protection contractors for unrelated sections and tools, a shift that could be unlawful, the lawmakers explained.

Congress allotted $one billion in money less than the Coronavirus, Help, Reduction, and Financial Protection Act for DoD to manufacture personalized protecting tools and other supplies. 

Not only did DoD reportedly redirect the huge vast majority of these money to protection contractors for initiatives unrelated to combating the pandemic, some protection corporations properly gained a double bailout for the reason that government details exhibits they also gained loans by means of the Paycheck Defense Plan, a aid system meant for having difficulties tiny companies, in accordance to the letter.

WHY THIS MATTERS 

All through the pandemic, many companies have dealt with shortages of personalized safety tools and adverse margins. 

Suppliers have gained $fifty billion and additional in specific aid from the $a hundred billion appropriation in the CARES Act and $seventy five billion from the Paycheck Defense Plan. 
Hospitals also gained accelerated and advance money, which are loans they are essential to fork out back. Many companies continue on to confront large income shortfalls thanks to COVID-19.

States will need $6 billion to distribute COVID-19 vaccines to Americans and hospitals continue on to endure a shortage of N95 masks, the letter states, indicating the money that went to the DoD are desired in other places. 

THE Bigger Pattern

The lawmakers foundation their request, at least in portion, on newspaper experiences showing that an overpowering vast majority of money had almost nothing to do with production of health-related tools or addressing the nation’s supply shortages thanks to the COVID-ten pandemic. 

Warren and colleagues earlier questioned the DoD on what Warren explained was its gradual and disjointed response to the coronavirus outbreak.

ON THE History

“As an alternative of addressing the urgent wants of a pandemic that has killed about 200,000 Americans, it seems DoD made use of taxpayer income meant to protect lives from COVID-19 to pad the pockets of protection contractors,” wrote the lawmakers. “The reported misuse by DoD of federal money … is inconsistent with the will of Congress and may be unlawful.”

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