The Terms and Conditions state that Provider Relief Fund payments will only be used to prevent, prepare for, and respond to coronavirus and shall reimburse the Recipient only for healthcare-related expenses or lost revenues that are attributable to coronavirus.
- Please refer to the Post-Payment Notice of Reporting Requirements, released on September 19 and updated October, 22, 2020, and associated FAQs on reporting for the most current information on use of funds, as well as the definitions on health care-related expenses and lost revenue.
The term “healthcare related expenses attributable to coronavirus” is a broad term that may cover a range of items and services purchased to prevent, prepare for, and respond to coronavirus, including:
• supplies used to provide health care services for possible or actual COVID-19 patients;
• equipment used to provide health care services for possible or actual COVID-19 patients;
• workforce training;
• developing and staffing emergency operation centers;
• reporting COVID-19 test results to federal, state, or local governments;
• building or constructing temporary structures to expand capacity for COVID-19 patient care or to provide health care services to non-COVID-19 patients in a separate area from where COVID-19 patients are being treated; and
• acquiring additional resources, including facilities, equipment, supplies, health care practices, staffing, and technology to expand or preserve care delivery.
- Providers may have incurred eligible health care related expenses attributable to coronavirus prior to the date on which they received their payment. Providers can use their Provider Relief Fund payment for such expenses incurred on any date, so long as those expenses were attributable to coronavirus and were used to prevent, prepare for, and respond to coronavirus. HHS expects that it would be highly unusual for providers to have incurred eligible expenses prior to January 1, 2020.
- You may use any reasonable method of estimating the revenue during March and April 2020 compared to the same period had COVID-19 not appeared. For example, if you have a budget prepared without taking into account the impact of COVID-19, the estimated lost revenue could be the difference between your budgeted revenue and actual revenue. It would also be reasonable to compare the revenues to the same period last year.
- All providers receiving Provider Relief Fund payments will be required to comply with the reporting requirements described in the Terms and Conditions and specified in on HHS’ website available at www.hhs.gov/providerrelief.
'- The term “lost revenues that are attributable to coronavirus” means any revenue that you as a health care provider lost due to coronavirus. This may include revenue losses associated with fewer outpatient visits, canceled elective procedures or services, or increased uncompensated care. Providers can use Provider Relief Fund payments to cover any cost that the lost revenue otherwise would have covered, so long as that cost prevents, prepares for, or responds to coronavirus.
- Thus, these costs do not need to be specific to providing care for possible or actual coronavirus patients, but the lost revenue that the Provider Relief Fund payment covers must have been lost due to coronavirus. HHS encourages the use of funds to cover lost revenue so that providers can respond to the coronavirus public health emergency by maintaining health care delivery capacity, such as using Provider Relief Fund payments to cover:
• Employee or contractor payroll
• Employee health insurance
• Rent or mortgage payments
• Equipment lease payments
• Electronic health record licensing fees