Reps. Axne, Miller-Meeks Lead Call to Extend Critical Relief for Health Care Providers

Press Release

Today, Reps. Cindy Axne (IA-03) and Mariannette Miller-Meeks (IA-02) led a bipartisan group of 77 members in a letter to the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) calling for greater flexibility and additional time for health care providers to use financial assistance they have received from the Provider Relief Fund (PRF).

In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, Congress has authorized a total of $178 billion for the PRF to help health care providers cover expenses and lost revenue due to the pandemic.

However, providers face a deadline of June 30, 2021 to spend unused funds and have limited options for how funds may be used, which threatens to hamper recipients' abilities to fully use their awards from the PRF.

"It is critical that every dollar of assistance to our health care providers can go as far as possible to keep people safe and healthy, particularly as we see SARS-CoV-2 variants like B.1.1.7 -- which is more transmissible and potentially more deadly -- account for an increasing share of new coronavirus cases. Providers are still delivering complex care for patients with COVID-19 and coping with higher procurement costs for personal protective equipment (PPE)," the members wrote. "Providing much-needed flexibility, such as allowing providers to use a partial lookback window to calculate lost revenues when non-emergent and non-essential procedures were shuttered and, in particular, extending the deadline to use the PRF funds to June 30, 2022 would give these providers the ability to put more of their PRF award toward fighting COVID-19."

In the letter, Rep. Axne highlights that some providers have only tapped this assistance as a last resort for fear of being required to return a significant portion of funds back to HHS.

This has resulted in hospitals postponing projects that would greatly assist in responding to the pandemic, like converting patient care rooms to being negative pressure rooms, allowing for more effective infection control.

"Our nation's health care providers have been on the frontlines of the fight against COVID-19 for over a year, and we can ill afford to sever a financial lifeline when providers are still treating patients with COVID-19 and facing higher prices for things like PPE," said Rep. Axne. "While effective, widely available vaccines are protecting more and more Americans every day from COVID-19, our health care providers have been clear -- the fight against COVID-19 is not over. We need to ensure that assistance Congress has made available doesn't dry up when there are still so many providers in need of assistance to continue looking after the health and safety of our communities."

"Our doctors, nurses, and hospitals have been working overtime for over a year now to save lives and keep the rest of us safe and healthy. Now is not the time to pull the financial plug on them," said Rep. Miller-Meeks. "The funding made available to our healthcare providers by Congress should remain available while they are still working hard to combat COVID-19. They deserve our support as they continue to combat this pandemic."

"The Provider Relief Funds have been an integral component for hospital's survival during the pandemic," said Kirk Norris, CEO and President of the Iowa Hospital Association. "With the pandemic still ongoing, extending the deadline on the use of the funds will allow hospitals to utilize them in the best way possible and keep their patients and communities safe and healthy."

"The Provider Relief Fund (PRF) has been a life-line to hospitals, health systems and caregivers across the country, helping to keep our doors open during the pandemic in order to continue providing essential care to patients and communities," said Stacey Hughes, Executive Vice President at the American Hospital Association. "The AHA thanks Representatives Axne and Miller-Meeks for leading this important bipartisan effort to extend the deadline for hospitals and other health care providers to use this funding and to distribute the remaining funds as soon as possible. These actions will help ensure we can continue to battle COVID-19 and save lives."

Rep. Axne has consistently advocated for allowing health care providers to keep and use the full amount they receive from the PRF.

In March, Rep. Axne reintroduced bipartisan legislation, the Eliminating the Provider Relief Fund Tax Penalties Act, which would ensure that all health care providers, regardless of taxpaying status, will not be subject to taxes on aid provided through the PRF -- and guarantees expenses attributable to the PRF are tax deductible.

This change would allow providers to use the full value of the benefit provided by HHS.

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