Montgomery County has received the final payment in its years-long effort to recover COVID-19-related expenses from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), bringing total reimbursements to more than $176.4 million.
The County received its final payment of $1,657,190 last week and said it has now received every dollar for which it was eligible through FEMA’s Public Assistance Program.
According to the County, the more than $176.4 million recovered substantially exceeds the amount sought or awarded to any other jurisdiction in Maryland.
“I am very pleased to share that all of our COVID-19 reimbursement requests have been fully processed and that Montgomery County has received the money it was eligible for,” County Executive Marc Elrich said.
The reimbursements cover eligible expenses associated with the County’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The recovery process took several years and included compiling documentation, submitting reimbursement requests, pursuing appeals and participating in audits as federal rules and procedures changed.
Numerous County departments participated in the pandemic response and reimbursement process, including the Office of Emergency Management and Homeland Security, Department of Health and Human Services and Office of Food Systems Resilience.
U.S. Sen. Chris Van Hollen and U.S. Rep. Jamie Raskin also assisted the County in its efforts to secure the federal reimbursements.
