Johns Hopkins University has been given $200,000 in federal funds to support its global COVID-19 tracker that has become the preeminent resource worldwide for tracking the spread of the coronavirus.
Democratic Senators Ben Cardin and Chris Van Hollen and Democratic Representatives Dutch Ruppersberger and John P. Sarbanes said the federal funds will be disbursed through the National Science Foundation Rapid Response Research grant program. The federal coronavirus stimulus package, under the CARES Act, allocated $75 million to the foundation to fund efforts that prevent, prepare for and respond to the coronavirus, domestically or internationally.
“The Johns Hopkins University COVID-19 dashboard remains the foremost tracking resource for public health experts and policymakers nationwide,” said the lawmakers in a statement. “We are committed to delivering sustained federal support to this important project.”
Johns Hopkins’ COVID-19 dashboard was first released publicly on Jan. 22.
“The Johns Hopkins Coronavirus Resource Center reflects our University’s foundational commitment to providing sound data and expert analysis to the world, “ said university president Ronald J. Daniels in the statement. “It is a collaboration between our leading public health experts, engineers and data scientists designed to inform sound policy and save lives in communities in Maryland and around the globe.”
