The Biden-Harris Administration announced today that the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), through the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), is making $25.5 billion in new funding available for health care providers affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. This funding includes $8.5 billion in American Rescue Plan (ARP) resources for providers who serve rural Medicaid, Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP), or Medicare patients, and an additional $17 billion for Provider Relief Fund (PRF) Phase 4 for a broad range of providers who can document revenue loss and expenses associated with the pandemic.
This funding is combined PRF Phase 4 and the ARP rural funding. This funding opportunity will open on September 29.
In addition, HHS has instituted a 60-day grace period to file Period 1 Provider Relief Fund reports. The deadline has not changed and is September 30, 2021. The grace period begins on October 1, 2021, and ends on November 30, 2021. The grace period is being given in response to challenges providers are facing given the current COVID surges and natural disasters around the country. Providers will be out of compliance if not filed by September 30, 2021, but there will be no recoupment or other enforcement actions. Providers are still encouraged to file by September 30, 2021. Any unused funds will now be due to be repaid to HHS by December 30, 2021.
The full press release is available here: https://www.hhs.gov/about/news/2021/09/10/hhs-announces-the-availability-of-25-point-5-billion-in-covid-19-provider-funding.html
Information regarding the extension for filing the Provider Relief Fund Reports for Period 1 can be found here: https://www.hrsa.gov/provider-relief/reporting-auditing
For any questions related to the CARES Act Provider Relief Fund, or healthcare reimbursement in general, contact Dave Macke, VonLehman’s Director of Reimbursement Services, at dmacke@vlcpa.com or 800.887.0437.
