§1320b–26 Funding for Providers Relating to Covid–19

Summary

The Secretary is given $8,500,000,000 for fiscal year 2021 to pay eligible rural health care providers for COVID‑19 related costs and lost revenue. The money comes from the Treasury and stays available until spent. Payments cannot cover costs already paid by someone else or that someone else must pay. The Secretary can make rules to run the program. To get a payment, a provider must apply in the form the Secretary requires and include: a statement and documents showing the need and the COVID‑related expenses and lost revenue; the provider’s tax identification number; promises to keep records and give any reports the Secretary asks for; and any other information the Secretary wants. Definitions in short: Eligible provider — a Medicare or Medicaid/CHIP‑enrolled provider or supplier that does COVID diagnosis, testing, or care and is rural. Health care related expenses — costs to prevent, prepare for, or respond to COVID‑19 (for example, temporary buildings, leases, medical supplies like PPE and tests, staffing and training, emergency center operations, facility changes, and surge capacity). Lost revenue — as defined in the HHS June 2020 FAQ, including the difference between budgeted and actual revenue if the budget was set before March 27, 2020. Payment — may be an advance, prospective, retrospective payment, or a grant. Rural provider or supplier — providers in rural areas, those treated as rural, those serving rural patients, rural health clinics, home health/hospice/long‑term services in rural homes, or others the Secretary defines.