Health Care Alert: Important HHS Payment Option Updates

As we have been communicating, the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) continues to provide updates regarding new and existing relief funds available to health care providers during the COVID-19 pandemic. Here is a summary of some of the key relief funds:

CARES-Round 2 Funding

General Distribution

HHS announced on Friday, April 24, 2020, the second round of funding from the CARES Act Provider Relief Fund is being made available to eligible health care providers. Of the initial $50 billion allocated for general distribution, this is the last $20 billion. The original $30 billion was distributed in April. Unlike the first round, this general distribution is available to eligible health care providers who apply on the General Distribution Portal (CARES Provider Relief Fund Payment Portal).

In order to be eligible, health care providers must have:

• Already received a payment from the Provider Relief Fund as of Friday, April 24, 2020 at 5:00 p.m. EST* ¹; and
• Acknowledged this payment receipt and accepted the Terms and Conditions on the Provider Attestation Portal.

*Note: Providers who have not received any Provider Relief Funding as of this date may still be eligible for other types of funding, such as the Targeted Distribution portion of the relief funds which are aimed at providers who are disproportionately impacted by COVID-19 such as those in areas with higher numbers of cases and designated hotspots.

Providers applying for this second round of funding will need the following information to apply:

1. A provider’s “Gross Receipts or Sales” or “Program Service Revenue” as submitted on its federal income tax return;
2. The provider’s estimated revenue losses in March 2020 and April 2020 due to COVID;
3. A copy of the provider’s most recently filed federal income tax return ²; and
4. A listing of the TINs of any of the provider’s subsidiary organizations that have received relief funds but that DO NOT file separate tax returns.

This information may also be used in allocating other Provider Relief Fund distributions. Although HHS intends for this second round of funding to replace revenue losses resulting from the pandemic, it is using this alternative method to calculate such losses as opposed to a set amount of Medicare reimbursements over a designated period of time.

HHS has stated that this funding will not be distributed on a first-come, first-served basis and intends to distribute funding within ten (10) business days of the completed application. It is processing applications in batches every Wednesday at 12 noon EST.

Finally, as with the first round of funding, this is not a loan and does not need to be paid back; however, providers will need to accept similar Terms and Conditions of payment as before after receipt of any funding.

Providers That Submit CMS Cost Reports

If your facility submits Cost Reports to CMS/Medicare, HHS has indicated that your second round of payments is going to be automated based on the information you have supplied in past Cost Report submissions unless for any reason that information is inadequate. All providers will still need to justify their revenue figures on the General Distribution portal (CARES Provider Relief Fund Payment Portal). These payments first went out on April 24, 2020 and will continue on a rolling basis as applications are submitted. We recommend that if your facility submits Cost Reports and you have not already received a deposit between April 24, 2020 and now, you should apply for funding on the General Distribution Portal.

HHS has provided an Frequently Asked Questions page to answer many questions about this process.

Uninsured Patient Reimbursement

As part of this relief to health care providers, President Trump has committed to helping those providers cover losses resulting from treating uninsured patients with COVID-19. Beginning on April 27, 2020, health care providers may submit claims for treating COVID-19 patients on or after February 4, 2020, for reimbursement at Medicare rates subject to available funding.

In order to be eligible for this reimbursement, providers will need to enroll, check patient eligibility and benefits, submit patient information, submit claims, and receive payment via direct deposit. Enrollment is set to open on April 27, 2020. Claims may be submitted on May 6, 2020 with direct deposit set to begin in mid-May.

For more information on this reimbursement and relief program, click here.

CMS Advance Payment Program Payments Temporarily Suspended

Announced April 27, 2020, CMS has suspended advance payments to Medicare Part B suppliers and will re-evaluate new and existing applications for Medicare accelerated payments to Part A providers. Citing the other relief funds made available to health care providers, CMS advanced nearly $100 billion in Medicare payments to providers as a loan based on the Medicare revenues of a static three (3) month period. These payments were meant to help with cash flow by advancing Medicare revenues to providers with repayment to occur 120 days after payments were made. Repayment would be made over one year for most hospitals and 210 days for all other providers.

These are just some of the highlights of the provider relief funding programs. As the impacts of COVID-19 continue to impact every industry over what is looking like the next several months, stay tuned for additional updates. Our health care attorneys at Brouse McDowell are in this with you and happy to partner with you as we navigate this unchartered territory.