JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. — Missouri is launching $50-million-worth of grants for small businesses and family farms affected by the COVID-19 pandemic and producers of personal protective equipment needed to help fight the pandemic.
In a press release, Missouri Governor Mike Parson said $30 million of grants will go to small businesses and $20 million will go to companies that will produce PPE.
Money for small businesses can be used to help pay employees' lost wages during the economic shutdown, make changes to facilities like installing air filtration systems or building e-commerce websites.
“This virus isn’t going away, and we have to protect both the lives and the livelihoods of Missouri workers, families, and children,” Department of Economic Development Director Rob Dixon said in a press release. “Thanks to today’s action by the Governor, we are not only reinvesting in our economy but building up the success and safety of our state over the long term.”
The other $20 million will help manufactures produce PPE. The grants will be used to reimburse companies facing high PPE production costs and will help other businesses retool existing infrastructure to transition to creating PPE.
Both programs are funded through the CARES Act. Businesses can apply for both grants at showmestrong.mo.gov.
Missouri reported a new single-day record of new coronavirus cases Tuesday as hospitalizations in the St. Louis area continued to climb.
The Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services reported a total of 28,862 COVID-19 cases Tuesday, an increase of 936 cases in a single day. The single-day increase topped the state's previous high of 795, which was reported last Thursday.
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