Since 2020 The Rockefeller Foundation has championed a comprehensive Covid-19 national response and recovery plan, focusing our efforts on providing evidence-based information and equitable access to life-saving tools.
We committed over $1 billion to Covid-19 response efforts over the first three years to achieve the three goals:
- accelerate the global response to this pandemic and prevent the next one;
- fight the existing and emerging crisis of hunger and malnutrition in the United States and around the world; and
- help workers, families, and vulnerable communities get through the pandemic and emerge with greater opportunity than they had before.
This included a National Testing Action Plan that aimed to create a state-led national program of Covid-19 testing that would support the reopening of the economy through the goals of workforce monitoring, early detection of recurrent outbreaks, and diagnostic and home testing.
- 15million
connections with individuals to share accurate public health information
- 30+states
and territories engaged in Covid-19 activities
- >6billion
Covid-19 tests purchased
In the United States, our investments in health successfully provided leading health professionals and policymakers with science-based tools and approaches to fight the pandemic and prevent future outbreaks. Our efforts ensured wider access to Covid-19 tests and vaccines, empowered community leaders, and provided a framework for creating and convening impact-driven peer action networks. Read through some of our key initiatives that were part of our response below.
Key Initiatives:
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Equity First Vaccination Initiative
The $23 million U.S. Equity-First Vaccination Initiative (EVI), aimed to reduce racial disparities in vaccination rates for Covid-19 in five pilot cities: Baltimore, Chicago, Houston, Newark, and Oakland. In-depth readouts from the Equity-First Vaccination Initiative, serve as a roadmap for how to build vaccine and health equity into public health. -
U.S. Testing and Tracing
Through the State and Territory Alliance for Testing (STAT) and the Pandemic Solutions Group (PSG), the Foundation convened governors from 30 states and senior public health officials from across over 50 U.S. cities, states, and Tribal Nations to discuss pertinent pandemic response topics, exchange best practices and learn about innovative testing and vaccine strategies to combat Covid-19. -
Reopening K-12 Schools
The Rockefeller Foundation and its partners supported schools efforts to reopen safely amid the pandemic by creating peer networks,developing tools and guidance, and gathering and sharing expert advice to help schools stand up and manage Covid-19 testing programs for students, teachers, and staff. -
Wastewater Surveillance
The Wastewater Action Group produced a series of five briefs—tracking data, measurement, data integration, sampling plans, and ethical monitoring— based on key insights, experiences and examples of best practices to inform and support public health decision-makers who may be implementing or expanding an existing wastewater surveillance system in their communities.