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Millions in coronavirus aid went to embattled Catholic dioceses

The US Catholic Church used a special and unprecedented ex­emption from federal rules to amass billions of dollars in taxpayer-backed coronavirus aid, with many millions going to dioceses that have paid huge settlements or sought bankruptcy protection because of clergy sexual abuse cover-ups.

The church’s haul may have reached—or even exceeded—$3.5 billion, making a global religious institution with more than a billion followers among the biggest winners in the US government’s pandemic relief efforts, according to an Associated Press analysis of federal data released in July.