On Jul. 2, 2021, the National Institutes of Health funding five additional projects to identify ways of safely returning students and staff to in-person school in areas with vulnerable and underserved populations. The awards were the second installment of the Safe Return to School Diagnostic Testing Initiative, launched earlier.

The new awards provided up to $15 million over two years for five projects in California, Arizona, Hawaii, Nebraska and Florida. The 8 initial awards, totaling $33 million over two years, were made in April 2021.