States with smaller populations and not many COVID-19 cases received substantial share of relief aid


Alaska, Hawaii, Montana, and Wyoming — all states with small populations and few COVID-19 cases — received a large share of federal aid compared to coronavirus epicenters like New York and New Jersey.
The coronavirus relief bill that passed in March set aside $150 billion in funds for states to cover coronavirus-related expenses incurred from March 1 through Dec. 30. The Associated Press looked at how much money each state received when measured by the number of positive COVID-19 tests, and found that Hawaii received $2 million per positive test and Alaska was given $3.4 million per test. New York and New Jersey are the two hardest-hit states, but New York only received about $24,000 per positive test and New Jersey roughly $27,000 per positive test.
In order to get lawmakers to agree to the bill, it was written that each state had to receive at minimum $1.25 billion in aid, no matter its population or number of COVID-19 cases. That's how much money Wyoming was given, despite having less than 600 COVID-19 tests come back positive. This is 80 percent of its annual general state budget, and Gov. Mark Gordon (R) told AP he knows there will be "unduly high scrutiny on how Wyoming uses those funds." He would like some of the money to go to businesses that have had to close down during the pandemic.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Sen. Bill Cassidy (R-La.) and Sen. Robert Menendez (D-N.J.) are proposing that state and local governments receive $500 billion more for coronavirus relief efforts, with the money allocated based on population, number of coronavirus cases, and the health of government budgets. Read more at The Associated Press.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.
-
Anne Hillerman's 6 favorite books with Native characters
Feature The author recommends works by Ramona Emerson, Craig Johnson, and more
-
How Zohran Mamdani's NYC mayoral run will change the Democratic Party
Talking Points The candidate poses a challenge to the party's 'dinosaur wing'
-
Book reviews: '1861: The Lost Peace' and 'Murderland: Crime and Bloodlust in the Time of Serial Killers'
Feature How America tried to avoid the Civil War and the link between lead pollution and serial killers
-
Kennedy ousts entire CDC vaccine advisory panel
speed read Health Secretary RFK Jr. is a longtime anti-vaccine activist who has criticized the panel of experts
-
RFK Jr. scraps Covid shots for pregnant women, kids
Speed Read The Health Secretary announced a policy change without informing CDC officials
-
New FDA chiefs limit Covid-19 shots to elderly, sick
speed read The FDA set stricter approval standards for booster shots
-
US overdose deaths plunged 27% last year
speed read Drug overdose still 'remains the leading cause of death for Americans aged 18-44,' said the CDC
-
Trump seeks to cut drug prices via executive order
speed read The president's order tells pharmaceutical companies to lower prescription drug prices, but it will likely be thrown out by the courts
-
RFK Jr. visits Texas as 2nd child dies from measles
Speed Read An outbreak of the vaccine-preventable disease continues to grow following a decade of no recorded US measles deaths
-
Shingles vaccine cuts dementia risk, study finds
Speed Read Getting vaccinated appears to significantly reduce the chances of developing Alzheimer's and other forms of dementia
-
Measles outbreak spreads, as does RFK Jr.'s influence
Speed Read The outbreak centered in Texas has grown to at least three states and Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. is promoting unproven treatments