General Distribution FAQs

To be eligible for a Phase 1 – General Distribution payment, providers must have billed Medicare fee-for-service (Parts A or B) in Calendar Year 2019. Additionally, under the Terms and Conditions associated with payment, these providers are eligible only if they provide or provided after January 31, 2020, diagnoses, testing, or care for individuals with possible or actual cases of COVID-19. HHS broadly views every patient as a possible case of COVID-19.

All providers retaining funds must sign an attestation and accept the Terms and Conditions associated with payment.

The Terms and Conditions for payments received on or around April 24, 2020, as part of the additional $20 billion under Phase 1 of the General Distribution require that recipients submit their revenue information.  Based on HHS’s records, due in some instances to system issues, the Department did not receive your required revenue information necessary for program integrity purposes and consideration for additional payments.  In order to be considered for an additional payment, recipients must submit this revenue information by September 13, 2020.  If a health care provider rejected the funds received on or around April 24 and does not want to keep any additional funds received as a result of submitting revenue, they may return a payment by going into the attestation portal within 90 days of receiving payment and indicating they are rejecting the funds.  Providers must return the payment within 15 calendar days of rejecting the payment.

No. You received an automated email sent by DocuSign to providers who initiate one or more entries that were not completed or submitted. A number of providers opened duplicate entries in the DocuSign web portal, resulting in one or more of the entries (referred to as “envelopes” by DocuSign) becoming “orphaned” and incomplete. The expiration status of one DocuSign entry does not affect any other submissions by that provider. If an application was completed and submitted, no further action is required on the healthcare provider’s part.

HHS is distributing an additional $20 billion of the General Distribution to providers to augment their initial allocation so that $50 billion is allocated proportional to providers' share of 2018 gross receipts or sales/program service revenue. Payments are determined based on the lesser of 2% of a provider's 2018 (or most recent complete tax year) gross receipts or the sum of incurred losses for March and April. If the initial General Distribution payment you received between April 10 and April 17 was determined to be at least 2% of your annual gross receipts or sales/program service revenue, you may not receive additional General Distribution payments. There may be additional distributions in the future for which providers are eligible.

To be eligible for the General Distribution, a provider must have billed Medicare fee-for-service in CY2019.  Phase 1 – General Distribution payments were made to the billing organization according to its Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN).  Payments to providers and practices that are part of larger medical groups went to the group's central billing office.

Some providers who did bill Medicare fee-for-service in CY2019 were not eligible for payment because either the provider is terminated from participation in Medicare or precluded from receiving payment through Medicare Advantage or Part D; is currently excluded from participation in Medicare, Medicaid, and other Federal health care programs; or currently has Medicare billing privileges revoked as determined by either the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services or the HHS Office of Inspector General.

If the provider's TIN that was intended for payment identifies both a social security number of an individual Medicare provider and another Medicare provider's employer identification number, that TIN was excluded from the General Distribution.  Providers were also excluded from the General Distribution if there was incomplete banking information and/or personal contact information. HHS is working to determine eligibility for a General Distribution payment for those affected providers. 

In general, providers can estimate payments from the Phase 1 – General Distribution of approximately 2% of 2018 (or most recent complete tax year) gross receipts or sales/program service revenue. To estimate your payment, use this equation:

(Individual Provider Revenues/$2.5 Trillion) X $50 Billion = Expected Combined General Distribution.
Providers should work with a tax professional for accurate submission.

This includes any payments under the first $30 billion General Distribution as well as under the $20 billion General Distribution allocations. Providers may not receive a second distribution payment if the provider received a first distribution payment of equal to or more than 2% of gross receipts.

Generally no.  Only patient care revenues from providing diagnoses, testing, or care for individuals with possible or actual cases of COVID-19 may be included.  Patient care revenues do include savings obtained by providers through enrollment in the 340B Program.

The Provider Relief Fund Payment Portal has been deployed to collect information from providers who received Phase 1 – General Distribution payments prior to April 24, 2020 at 5:00 pm EST.

The Provider Relief Fund Payment Portal collects four pieces of information to allocate remaining Phase 1 – General Distribution funds:

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;
4. A listing of the TINs for any of the provider's subsidiary organizations that received relief funds but DO NOT file separate tax returns.

This information may also be used to allocate other Provider Relief Fund distributions.

HHS is collecting: the "gross receipt or sales" or "program service revenue" data to have an understanding of a provider's usual operations; the revenue loss information to have an understanding of COVID impact; and, tax forms to verify the self- reported information. HHS is collecting information about organizational structure and subsidiary TINs so that we do not overpay or underpay providers who file tax returns covering multiple legal entities (e.g. consolidated tax returns).

Providers meeting the following criteria are required to submit a separate portal application:

1. Provider has received Provider Relief Fund payments as of 5:00pm EST Friday April 24, 2020 AND
2. Provider has filed a federal income tax return for 2017, 2018, or 2019.

As such, each entity that files a federal income tax return is required to file an application even if it is part of a provider group. However, a group of corporations that files one consolidated return will have only the tax return filer apply.

Each provider submitting an application is required to list the TINs of each subsidiary that (a) has received Provider Relief Fund payments as of 5:00 EST Friday April 24, 2020 AND (b) has not filed federal income tax returns for 2017, 2018, or 2019.

Do not list any subsidiary's TIN that has filed a federal income tax return, because such subsidiary is required to submit a separate application.
For example:

1. A parent entity and two subsidiaries received Provider Relief Fund payments. The parent filed a federal income tax return, but the two subsidiaries did not as they are consolidated with the parent.

The parent should submit an application and list the subsidiary TINs therein. The subsidiaries cannot submit an application as they did not file a tax return.

2. A parent entity and two subsidiaries A and B received Provider Relief Fund payments. The parent and subsidiary A filed a federal income tax return, but the subsidiary B did not as it is consolidated with the parent.

The parent and subsidiary A should submit separate applications. The parent would list the TIN subsidiary B in its application.

Eligibility
To enter the Provider Relief Fund General Distribution Payment Portal you must meet two criteria:

1. You must have already received a Provider Relief Fund Payment by 5:00 pm EST, Friday April 24, 2020
2. You must attest to having received the payment via the CARES Act Provider Relief Fund Payment Attestation Portal, and you must agree to the Terms and Conditions on the attestation portal.

Data
Before you initiate your application via the Provider Relief Fund General Distribution Payment Portal, please collect the following data

1. The Taxpayer Identification Number for the organization applying for Provider Relief funds. ("Application TIN")
2. The Taxpayer Identification Number(s) of any subsidiary organizations if and only if those organizations do not file separate tax returns, but rather consolidate into the returns of the "Application TIN". If your organization has subsidiaries that file separate tax returns, a separate application must be made for each subsidiary that files a separate return.
3. An estimate of the organization's lost revenue for March 2020 and April 2020. Lost revenue can be estimated by comparing year-over-year revenue, or by comparing budgeted revenue to actual revenue. For April 2020, an estimate of the total monthly loss based on data from the first few weeks in April or by extrapolation from March data is acceptable.
4. A copy of the most recent tax form filed by the organization associated with the Application TIN.

Any person authorized by the provider organization may complete this form. We recommend it be completed by an organization's corporate office, specifically, the CFO or other accounting professional.

No. HHS will be processing applications in batches every week. Funds will not be disbursed on a first-come-first-served basis, which is to say, an applicant will be given equal consideration regardless of when they apply.

HHS is collecting tax and financial loss data from providers who have already received payments under the General Distribution. If you have not already received a Provider Relief Fund payment you are not eligible to submit your tax and financial loss information to the Provider Relief Fund General Distribution Payment Portal. However, this does not mean that you are ineligible for forthcoming Provider Relief funds.

If you received a General Distribution payment by 5:00 pm EST, Friday April 24, 2020 and are being told that your TIN is ineligible, please check to see if you entered your TIN correctly and check to see that the TIN matches the TIN for the organization that received a Provider Relief Fund payment.

Organizations that have not received any General Distribution payments as of April 24, 2020 may be eligible for relief funds in future distributions. The Provider Relief Fund General Distribution Payment Portal is only collecting tax IDs from providers who have received a General Distribution payment.

During the HHS review of the data submitted through the Provider Relief Fund Payment Portal, a number of health care providers that submitted their information for payments from the Phase 1 – General Distribution were flagged for data verification, and may require additional follow-up and communication prior to receiving funds.  Common issues that prompted a submission to be flagged for further review include information entered not matching tax documentation, providers with significantly lower than expected Medicare revenue, and apparent data entry errors.

Please resubmit your revenue information on the General Distribution Provider Relief Fund Payment Portal for HHS verification.  Resubmissions have the same instructions and requirements as the original DocuSign submission. Please review these instructions and requirements to ensure that you are submitting the correct information.

No. HHS reached out directly to those providers who need to resubmit their revenue information. If you did not receive an email from HHS requesting resubmission, you do not need to take any action at this time. 

No. The application process for the $20 billion General Distribution closed on June 3, 2020. Providers will still be considered for future Provider Relief Fund Payments. Information on future distributions will be shared when publicly available.

HHS is using DocuSign to securely pass encrypted data to HHS. Neither DocuSign nor UnitedHealth Group will have access to your data.

DocuSign is securely passing your data to HHS in encrypted files. Neither DocuSign nor UnitedHealth Group will have access to your data.

UnitedHealth Group and its subsidiaries will not have access to any information collected from providers, nor do they participate in determining the methodology used to allocate Provider Relief Fund payments.  UnitedHealth Group will know the amounts of relief funding paid to providers, as UnitedHealth Group is processing the payments.

HHS will have access to your revenue data to optimally allocate Provider Relief Funds. HHS will not share your revenue data with any other entities, in or outside of government, except as prescribed by law.

To be eligible to apply, the applicant must meet all of the following requirements:

1. Either
   1. Must have either (i) directly billed their state Medicaid/CHIP programs or Medicaid managed care plans for health care-related services during the period of January 1, 2018, to December 31, 2019, or (ii) own (on the application date) an included subsidiary that has either directly billed their state Medicaid/CHIP programs or Medicaid managed care plans for health care-related services during the period of January 1, 2018, to December 31, 2019; or
   2. Must be a dental service provider who has either (i) directly billed health insurance companies for oral health care-related services, or (ii) owns (on the application date) an included subsidiary that has directly billed health insurance companies for oral health care-related services; or
   3. Must be a licensed dental service provider who does not accept insurance and has either (i) directly billed patients for oral health care-related services, or (ii) who owns (on the application date) an included subsidiary that does not accept insurance and has directly billed patients for oral health care-related services;
   4. Must have billed Medicare fee-for-service during the period of January 1, 2019 and December 31, 2019;
   5. Must be a Medicare Part A provider that experienced a change in ownership and billed Medicare fee-for-service in 2019 and 2020 that prevented the otherwise eligible provider from receiving a Phase 1 - General Distribution payment; or
   6. Must be an state-licensed/certified assisted living facility.
2. Must have either (i)  filed a federal income tax return for fiscal years 2017, 2018 or 2019 or (ii) be an entity exempt from the requirement to file a federal income tax return and have no beneficial owner that is required to file a federal income tax return. (e.g. a state-owned hospital or health care clinic); and
3. Must have provided patient care after January 31, 2020; and
4. Must not have permanently ceased providing patient care directly, or indirectly through included subsidiaries; and
5. If the applicant is an individual, have gross receipts or sales from providing patient care reported on Form 1040, Schedule C, Line 1, excluding income reported on a W-2 as a (statutory) employee.

Providers who have received a payment under Phase 1 of the General Distribution are no longer prohibited from submitting an application under Phase 2 of the General Distribution.  Providers who received a previous Phase 1 – General Distribution payment are eligible to apply and, if they have not yet received a payment that is approximately 2% of annual revenue from patient care, may receive additional funds.

Some assisted living facilities have already successfully applied for funding under Phase 2 of the General Distribution.  To support payments to assisted living facilities who may not bill Medicare or Medicaid, HHS has developed a curated list of assisted living facility TINs from third party sources and HHS datasets.  Providers with TINs on the curated list must meet other eligibility requirements including operating in good standing and not be excluded from receiving federal payments.  As a next step, HHS will work with states and its partners to authenticate assisted living facilities not on the curated list.  Please note that it may take additional time to validate an applicant’s TIN.  If they receive the results of that validation after September 13, they will still be able to complete and submit their application.

HHS developed the curated list of assisted living facilities from state licensing boards/organizations, the American Health Care Association (AHCA), National Center for Assisted Living (NCAL), Argentum, Brookdale, Leading Age, and other assisted living groups.

The Phase 2 – General Distribution methodology will be based upon 2% of (revenues * percent of revenues from patient care) from the applicant's most recent federal income tax return for 2017, 2018 or 2019 and with accompanying submitted tax documentation. Payments will be made to applicant providers who are on the filing TIN curated list submitted by states to HHS or whose applications underwent additional validation by HHS.

Yes, a health care provider may enter the Provider Relief Fund Application and Attestation Portal and enter their TIN for validation and submit a new application for Phase 2 even if there is an application still under consideration as part of Phase 1 of the General Distribution. Please note that Phase 2 applications will not be considered until all applications submitted for a Phase 1 – General Distribution payment have been adjudicated, either by receiving an additional payment or being determined ineligible for a Phase 1 payment. The payment amount received under Phase 2 will reflect total payments received under Phase 1 General Distribution.

If the applicant is a parent entity applying on behalf of multiple subsidiaries and it would like each subsidiary to receive its own payment, the applicant should create an Optum ID account and submit an application for each TIN that should receive its own payment.  The applicant should include the unique banking information for each subsidiary’s application.

If the applicant is a parent entity applying on behalf of multiple subsidiaries and it would like a single payment for all of the included subsidiaries, the applicant should create one Optum ID account for the parent entity and submit a single application with the filing TIN. 

The parent entity that is applying on behalf of subsidiaries will have the opportunity to enter multiple subsidiary TINs for the parent organization TIN.  The parent entity only needs to add one “Organizational TIN” on their dashboard.  After adding the “organizational TIN, the applicant should click “Get Started” once they arrive on the “Practice Detail” page, under the “Group/Individual Information” heading.  The applicant can enter up to 1,200 subsidiary TINs into the “List of Subsidiary TINs Associated with This Entity” field.  The applicant may paste a list of TINs directly into this field.  Next, the applicant should review their information and click “Submit TIN.”  Once the TINs are verified, the applicant will progress to the DocuSign form, where they can submit the applicable tax information that accounts for each TIN included in the application.

Providers who received a Phase 1 - General Distribution payment that was less than 2% of revenue from patient care must meet the revised eligibility requirements for the Phase 2 - General Distribution and follow the application instructions available for the distribution. Applicants should use the Provider Relief Fund Application and Attestation Portal to apply for funds.

In line with the policies established for the Phase 2 - General Distribution, HHS will be making payments to applicants based on filing TIN for all those who apply as part of this newer distribution.

At this time, HHS is only expanding eligibility to the Phase 2 - General Distribution to those health care providers that experienced a change in ownership that prevented them from receiving a Phase 1 - General Distribution payment. Providers that experienced a change in ownership may be eligible for future Targeted Distributions.

Yes.  The health care provider is eligible to apply for a Phase 2 – General Distribution payment if it otherwise meets the eligibility criteria and has not yet received a General Distribution payment of approximately 2% of annual revenue from patient care.

The Medicaid provider/management company must apply, because neither the property owner nor its parent company is an eligible healthcare provider.  The Medicaid provider/management company must use the funds for eligible healthcare related expenses or lost revenues attributable to coronavirus.  However, the Medicaid provider/management company could, for example, purchase PPE from the property owner or its parent company.

Providers who are enrolled in Medicaid and did not receive a Phase 1 – General Distribution payment may apply for a payment through the Provider Relief Fund Application and Attestation Portal as long as they provided diagnoses, testing, or care for individuals with possible or actual cases of COVID-19 after January 31, 2020.   HHS broadly views every patient as a possible case of COVID-19. Providers must meet all five eligibility criteria listed in the application guidance in order to be considered for a payment.

You must meet the five eligibility requirement for the Phase 2 – General Distribution; must not be currently terminated from participation in Medicare or precluded from receiving payment through Medicare Advantage or Part D; must not be currently excluded from participation in Medicare, Medicaid, and other Federal health care programs; and must not currently have Medicare billing privileges revoked.  In addition, your billing TIN must be included in the State-provided list of eligible Medicaid and CHIP providers, the HHS-created list of dental providers, the list of providers who received a Phase 1 – General Distribution payment, the list of Medicare Part A providers that experienced a change in ownership in 2019 or 2020, or your application must pass additional validation by HHS.

If a health care provider was eligible for Phase 1 – General Distribution payment, it is now eligible for a Phase 2 – General Distribution payment if the provider has not yet received a payment that equals approximately 2% of revenue from patient care.

Yes.  Payments received as part of the Phase 1 - General Distribution will be taken into account when determining payment amounts for the Phase 2 - General Distribution.  If a health care provider has not yet received a payment that equals approximately 2% of revenue from patient care, it may now be eligible for a Phase 2 - General Distribution payment. 

Additionally, prior payment in a Provider Relief Fund Targeted Distribution (like the High Impact Area, Rural, Indian Health Service, and Skilled Nursing Facility Targeted Distributions) does not affect eligibility for, or amount of, a possible payment.

Yes, if you were eligible for the Phase 1 – General Distribution and rejected the payment, you are now eligible to apply for Phase 2 – General Distribution payment that is approximately 2% of revenue from patient care.

Yes, if a provider is on the State-provided list of eligible Medicaid and CHIP providers or HHS-created list of dental providers, then they are eligible to apply. Medicaid or CHIP providers who are not on the State-provided list or dental provider who are not on the HHS-created list will undergo additional validation by HHS.

Yes. Receipt of funds from SBA and FEMA for coronavirus recovery or of Medicaid HCBS retainer payments does not preclude a health care provider from being eligible for Phase 2 of the General Distribution to Medicaid, CHIP, and dental providers if the health care provider otherwise meets the criteria for eligibility and can substantiate that the Provider Relief Fund payments were used for increased health care related expenses or lost revenue attributable to COVID-19, so long as they are not reimbursed from other sources and other sources were not obligated to reimburse them.

Yes. Healthcare providers that bill for services in Medicaid or CHIP that are covered under either a waiver or state plan, including disability service providers and other providers of Medicaid-funded home and community-based services (HCBS) (e.g., day habilitation, HCBS waiver program services), are eligible for the General Distribution – Phase 2 if they otherwise meet the other eligibility criteria.

No. However, HHS is making payments to safety net hospitals that serve the nation's most vulnerable citizens on the front lines in addition to the Phase 2 – General Distribution payments for Medicaid, CHIP, and dental providers. These hospitals serve a disproportionate number of Medicaid recipients and provide large amounts of uncompensated care and operate on thin profit margins. HHS may make further Provider Relief Fund payments to non-hospital safety net providers in the future.

No. PACE organizations are not eligible to apply for second phase of the General Distribution. However, providers that participate in PACE may be eligible for this distribution if they meet the eligibility criteria and can attest to the Terms and Conditions.

HHS has not yet determined the methodology for subsequent Provider Relief Fund distributions at this time, but will share additional information in the future. Providers should not have the expectation that they will be advantaged by applying for funds from one distribution over another. Providers should apply for a Provider Relief Fund payment in the first distribution in which they are eligible.

No, providers that enrolled in Medicaid or CHIP after January 1, 2020 are not eligible to apply under the second phase of the General Distribution. Providers who began billing Medicaid/CHIP between January 1 and May 31, 2020 may be eligible for future allocations of the Provider Relief Fund.

HHS collected 2018 and 2019 Medicaid and CHIP provider data from state and federal sources, including corporate names, TINs, and payment amounts, and is using this data to validate Portal submissions.  Data is not yet available for new providers who submitted claims between January 1 and May 31, 2020.

While the self-directed providers are eligible to receive Provider Relief Fund money, payments from the Provider Relief Fund will be made to the filing TIN entity. If the FMS organization is the filing TIN entity, it will need to apply on behalf of the self-directed providers and distribute the funds as appropriate to the providers. If self-directed providers were included in the provider files submitted by CMS from states or are included T-MSIS files, they might be eligible to apply directly for payment. Where a FMS organization receives the Provider Relief Fund payment, it has discretion in allocating the Provider Relief Fund payments among self-directed providers, to support the providers' health care related expenses or lost revenue attributable to COVID-19, so long as the payment is used to prevent, prepare for, or respond to coronavirus and those expenses or lost revenue are not reimbursed from other sources or other sources were not obligated to reimburse them.

These mechanisms do not impact eligibility for the Provider Relief Fund. Phase 2 – General Distribution payments will be paid to the filing TIN entity based on the entity's percentage of total revenue attributable to patient service revenue.

Phase 2 – General Distribution payments will be made to the filing TIN entities. If the OHCDS are the filing TIN entity, the payment will go to that entity, who has the sole discretion about how funds are distributed. The Provider Relief Fund payment recipient has discretion in allocating the Provider Relief funds to support its subsidiaries' health care related expenses or lost revenue attributable to COVID-19, so long as the payment is used to prevent, prepare for, or respond to coronavirus and those expenses or lost revenue are not reimbursed from other sources or other sources were not obligated to reimburse them.

Yes. Healthcare providers that bill for Medicaid or CHIP services through a county behavioral health provider network are eligible for the Phase 2 – General Distribution if they otherwise meet the other eligibility criteria.

Phase 2 – General Distribution payments will be paid to the Filing / Organizational TIN, and not directly to subsidiary TINs. The Provider Relief Fund payment recipient has discretion in allocating the Provider Relief funds to support its subsidiaries' health care related expenses or lost revenue attributable to COVID-19, so long as the payment is used to prevent, prepare for, or respond to coronavirus and those expenses or lost revenue are not reimbursed from other sources or other sources were not obligated to reimburse them.

FQHC are eligible for this distribution if they have not received a payment from the initial $50 billion General Distribution. Most FQHC providers are paid by the FQHC as salaried or contracted employees and do not independently bill for services. However, if a provider who works at an FQHC bills under his or her TIN for FQHC out-of-scope patient services, that provider may also be eligible for a distribution.

Payments will be disbursed on a rolling basis, as information is validated. HHS may seek additional information from providers as necessary to complete its review.

HHS collected Medicaid and CHIP provider data from state and federal sources, including corporate names, TINs, and payment amounts, and is using this data to validate Portal submissions. The data collected from states was also used to help inform the overall payment methodology.

HHS intends to make Provider Relief Fund payments in a fair, transparent, and fast manner. HHS will distribute payments on a weekly basis according to submission date.

Yes. Indian health care providers are eligible to apply for a payment from the Phase 2 – General Distribution if they meet all of the eligibility criteria. Prior payment from the Indian Health Service Targeted Distribution (or another targeted distribution) does not affect eligibility for the Phase 2 – General Distribution, i.e., providers who have received a Targeted Distribution may use this portal as long as they have not been paid in the $50 billion General Distribution.

Yes. Healthcare providers that bill either fee-for-service or managed care in Medicaid or CHIP are eligible for the Phase 2 – General Distribution if they otherwise meet the other eligibility criteria.

HHS is currently posting payment information for providers who have attested to receiving a payment from the Provider Relief Fund and accepted the associated Terms and Conditions.

When a health care providers applies, the first step of the application process is to validate that their TIN is on curated lists of providers known to be in good standing and eligible under this phase. Applicants that are not on that list will be validated through an additional process with the state or other third party sources to determine if the provider is a known provider that was not captured initially.  HRSA will be working directly with states and third party sources to authenticate providers not on the curated list and will not be reaching out to individual providers for validation.  Please note that it may take additional time to validate an applicant’s TIN.  If they receive the results of that validation after August 28, they will still be able to complete and submit their application. 

Payments will be made to applicant providers who are in the filing TIN curated list from CMS if they are a Medicaid or CHIP provider.  If a TIN is not on the curated list of state-submitted eligible Medicaid/CHIP providers or T-MSIS, it will be flagged as invalid.  In these cases, HHS will work with the states to verify whether the TIN should be included as a valid Medicaid or CHIP provider in good standing.

If a TIN is not on the curated list of dental providers, HHS will conduct additional analysis related to the TIN and any active dental providers associated with the TIN. 

If a TIN is not on a curated list of assisted living facilities, HHS will conduct additional analysis related to the TIN and any currently operating assisted living facilities associated with the TIN.

If the TIN is subsequently marked as valid, the provider will be notified to proceed submitting data into DocuSign even if validation occurs after the September 13, 2020 deadline. TINs that cannot be validated will not receive funding.  Please note, the additional TIN validation may result in a delay in processing the application.

The deadline to submit a TIN for validation for the Phase 2 – General Distribution is September 13, 2020. Applications must be completed in a timely manner once TIN validation is complete.

Yes. A health care provider must submit their TIN for validation by end of day September 13, 2020. If they receive the results of that validation after September 13, they will still be able to complete and submit their application.

Many dental providers have already successfully applied for funding under Phase 2 of the General Distribution.  To support payments to dental providers who may not bill Medicare or Medicaid, HHS has developed a curated list of dental practice TINs from third party sources and HHS datasets.  Providers with TINs on the curated list must meet other eligibility requirements including operating in good standing and not be excluded from receiving federal payments.  As a next step, HHS will work with states and its vendors to authenticate dental providers not on the curated list.  Please note that it may take additional time to validate an applicant’s TIN.  If they receive the results of that validation after September 13, they will still be able to complete and submit their application.

If your TIN cannot be validated within 15 days of submission, you will receive an email 13 days after submission notifying you that additional verification is required by the State/Territory Medicaid or CHIP agency. If you do not receive an email, please contact the Provider Support Line at (866) 569-3522 (for TTY, dial 711).  Please note that it may take additional time to validate your TIN in these instances, particularly when close to deadlines.  If you receive the results of that validation after September 13, you will still be able to complete and submit your application.

Yes. The applicant must resubmit their financial information and fill out a new application in the Provider Relief Fund Application and Attestation Portal. Information submitted in the previous Payment Portal will not carry over into the new portal. Additionally, applications will not be considered until all applications submitted for a Phase 1 – General Distribution payment in the Provider Relief Fund Payment Portal have been adjudicated, either by receiving an additional payment or being determined ineligible for a Phase 1 payment.

Providers should use the Provider Relief Fund Application and Attestation Portal to submit the required Terms information. Providers will be considered for additional payment if they have not yet received funds that are approximately 2% of revenue from patient care. If a provider does not want additional funds, they may return the funds and reject the attestation within 90 days of receipt. The Application and Attestation Portal will guide providers through the attestation process to reject the funds.

CMS issued a data call to States that sought information on eligible Medicaid providers including Tax Identification Number (TIN). HRSA used the TINs from this CMS-developed list, coupled with federal T-MSIS data to establish the "curated" list of potentially eligible providers who are permitted to submit a full Phase 2 – General Distribution payment application. Providers with TINs on the "curated" list must meet other eligibility requirements including operating in good standing with States and CMS and not be excluded from receiving Medicaid, Medicare, or federal payments.

HHS used third-party and HHS datasets to identify the eligible dental providers to populate the curated list of known dental providers.

If applicants are not on the curated list provided by state, HHS is using additional data, to validate a provider's eligibility. We have accepted amended submissions from states as well.

HRSA is validating provider eligibility using State-provided lists of eligible Medicaid and CHIP providers. If you are not on those lists, HHS is taking additional steps to validate your eligibility using T-MSIS data. In most instances, HHS will respond within 15 business days; however, this process may take up to several weeks.

If the parent organization does not have an NPI, the applicant should insert the subsidiary Group NPI that is best representative of the health care services delivered by the parent organization's subsidiaries. If the parent organization and its subsidiaries do not have an NPI, the applicant should enter “not applicable.” The field cannot be left blank.

Generally no. Only patient care revenues from providing health care, services, and supports, as provided in a medical setting, at home, or in the community may be included. Patient care revenues do include savings obtained by providers through enrollment in the 340B Program. HHS is still reviewing potential exceptions to the rule as related to providers who provide unreported health care services as a part of the furnishings of pharmaceuticals.

“Patient care” means health care, services and supports, as provided in a medical setting, at home, or in the community to individuals who may currently have or be at risk for COVID-19, whereby HHS broadly views every patient as a possible case of COVID-19.  Assisted living facilities that are applying for Phase 2 – General Distribution funds may include patient care revenue that supports residents’ nutritional, housing, activities of daily living, and medical needs, including purchased services. 

Resident fees that cover their accommodations can be considered patient service revenue.

Yes.  The revenue from independent living units as a part of larger assisted or skilled nursing facilities fits within the definition of “patient care” applying for the Phase 2 – General Distribution.

Any applicant with revenue adjustments, including those that experienced a change in ownership in 2019 or 2020, who enters an adjusted revenue number different from the applicable number shown on its most recent tax return must upload the Revenue Worksheet.  Applicants that experience a change in ownership should report the revenue, along with the proportion of revenue from patient care, for the acquisition or dispositions from the date of sale through the date of application in the Provider Relief Fund Application and Attestation Portal.  Applicants should provide their own most recent tax return and fill out the Revenue Worksheet to reflect the change in revenue as a result of the acquisition or disposition.

If an organization does not have tax filings, nor audited financial statements, it may submit internally-generated financial statements; in the case of federal grantees, the most recent four quarters of SF-425 forms, or for eligible federal entities, the most recent annual report submitted to Unified Financial Management System (UFMS).

Medicare Part A providers that experienced a change in ownership and meet the other eligibility criteria for Phase 2 of the General Distribution may receive additional funds if the revenue from the included subsidiaries that were acquired is greater than 20% of the revenue figure on the most recent tax filings or audited financial statements.

ACH payments are a secure and expeditious way to transfer money. The majority of payments will be made through bank transfer. Organizations with revenue greater than $5,000,000 will be required to set up ACH accounts to allow the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to most effectively and quickly deliver funds to providers, as well as maximize program integrity and fraud avoidance.

The first Provider Relief Fund Payment Portal was used for providers who received a General Distribution payment prior to Friday, April 24^th.  These providers were required to submit financial information in order to receive approximately 2% of revenues derived from patient care. 

HHS has developed the new Provider Relief Fund Application and Attestation Portal for providers who bill Medicaid and CHIP (e.g., pediatricians, long-term care, and behavioral health providers) or are dental providers.  HHS has since expanded eligibility to other  providers, including those who may not have received additional funds as part of the Phase 1 – General Distribution.

The portal currently will say "Get Started" until a final determination has been made on provider payment. If and when a payment has been made, you will be able to move on in the portal to attest to the payment.

The FMS organization should include an individual provider in the FTE count if the individual is an employee and receives a W-2. Contracted providers that are not employees should not be included in the FTE count. If the provider works without physician supervision, they should be counted as a primary provider FTE in field 27. If the provider works under physician supervision, they should be counted as a non-primary provider FTE in field 28.

In general, if the individual is being paid through an FMS organization, the organization is likely the filing and billing TIN and would be eligible to apply for the Phase 2 – General Distribution. In that situation, the self-directed provider should contact the FMS organization to confirm that the organization is submitting an application on their behalf or whether the provider should submit an application as an individual self-directed provider.

Yes.  The FMS organization can include both TINs and associated revenues in their application for the Phase 2 – General Distribution, as long as the services delivered under both TINs qualify as "patient care" and the entity can meet the attestation requirements for both TINs.

Yes.  Applicants may include administrative fees provided by the state Medicaid program in the reported revenue, as well as in the percentage of revenue from patient care reported in field 12.

If you are a provider that is not licensed by your state but otherwise meets the eligibility criteria for the second phase of the General Distribution, you should enter "not applicable" in the field.  The field cannot be left blank.

No.  The applicant may only include patient care revenue in its application for Provider Relief Fund payments, which is found in line 9 of Form 990 for tax-exempt organizations.

An Applicant Type Code is a two-character series of letters that generally summarizes an organization's purpose. Enter the single code that best describes your organization from following list:

Applicant Type Code	Description
AG	Agencies (ex. foster care, PACE, developmental disabled services, etc.)
BE	Behavioral Health (Outpatient)
CA	Case Management
CL	Clinic/Center
CO	Community-based Social Support Providers
DE	Dental Services
EM	Emergency
HO	Home Health
HS	Hospital
NO	Non-emergency Medical Transport
NU	Nursing Service Providers
OB	Obstetrics / Gynecology
OP	Other Physician
PE	Pediatrics
PP	Primary Care Physician
RF	Residential Facilities
RB	Residential Facilities (Behavioral)
SA	Substance Abuse (Rehabilitation)
OT	Other

Home- and Community-Based Service (HCBS) provider applicants should categorize personal care services as "Other," code OT.  Intermediate Care Facilities for Individuals with Intellectual Disabilities (ICF/IID) applicants should categorize their services as "Residential Facilities," code RF.

An applicant should include all of its subsidiary TINs in application for the Phase 2 – General Distribution.

No. Applicants should include revenue in field 15 for all subsidiaries included in the application.

Applicants should enter the most recent revenues number from its federal tax return of 2017, 2018, or 2019.  If the applicant for tax purposes is a:

• Sole proprietor or disregarded entity owned by an individual: Enter Line 3 from IRS Form 1040, Schedule C excluding any income reported on W-2.
• Partnership: Enter Line 1c minus Line 12 from IRS Form 1065.
• C corporation: Enter Line 1c minus Line 15 from IRS Form 1120.
• S corporation: Enter Line 1c minus Line 10 from IRS Form 1120-S.
• Tax-exempt organization: Enter Line 9 from IRS Form 990 minus any joint venture income, if included in Part VIII lines 2a – 2f.
• Trust or estate: Enter Line 3 from IRS Form 1040, Schedule C.
• Entity not required to file any of the previously mentioned IRS forms: Enter a "net patient service revenue" number or equivalent from the applicant's most recent audited financial statements (or management-prepared financial statements)
• Applicants with gross revenue adjustments should enter an adjusted gross revenues number as calculated using the Gross Revenues Worksheet in Field 15 available at: https://www.uhcprovider.com/content/dam/provider/docs/public/other/PRF-Gross-Revenues-Worksheet.xlsx.

The amount reported in Field 10 should be net patient revenue plus other operating income. Net patient revenue is gross patient revenue less contractual adjustments, charity care/financial assistance, and bad debt expense. Other revenues, such as rental income, grants and contributions, joint venture income, and investment income, should be excluded from the amount reported in Field 10.

No.  Applicants must use the forms referenced in the Phase 2 – General Distribution application instructions that correspond to the applicant's tax filer status.

Yes, in order to most effectively and quickly deliver funds to providers, HHS recommends that applicants sign up for ACH at the same time they submit a Provider Relief Fund application. This will prevent delays in issuing payment once an application has been approved.

State licensure is not an eligibility requirement for a Phase 2 – General Distribution payment from the Provider Relief Fund. HHS is currently assessing the system issue that is preventing eligible unlicensed providers from completing the application process and will resolve it as quickly as possible. We will share more information as it becomes available.

If an applicant health care provider bills for care under a single TIN that provides care across multiple different facilities, the parent organization may report patient revenue for every facility that bills underneath the TIN.

You can only submit one application. You can edit the data on the application form, until the form is submitted. You cannot edit or resubmit the application form once it is submitted. You should not apply until you have available all of the information and documentation required by the application form.

HHS is working to process all providers' submissions as quickly as possible. HHS may seek additional information from providers as necessary to complete its review.

• The applicant's most recent federal income tax return for 2017, 2018 or 2019 or a written statement explaining why the applicant is exempt from filing a federal income tax return (e.g. a state-owned hospital or health care clinic).
• If required by Field 15, the applicant's Gross Revenue Worksheet (provided by HHS).

Upload a statement explaining why the entity is not required to file a federal tax form (note that non-profit entities should submit a Form 990) or is unable to provide the required information.  In addition, provide the most recent audited financial statements (or management prepared financial statements) for the TIN entity.  If the financial information of a TIN entity is reported as part of a parent organization, it may be necessary to provide consolidating audited financial statements that breakout the revenue and expenses for the TIN entity.

The health care provider should use the status that was included in the most recent tax filing when applying for Provider Relief Fund payments.  For example, if a practice was a C corporation in 2019 and is an S corporation in 2020, it should apply as a C corporation.

Lost revenue estimates should be based on budget-to-actual or year-over-year, and should include revenue from all sources that can be attributed to COVID-19.  This may include value-based payments, such as quality measure achievement payments.