CARES Act Provider Relief Fund: For Providers

Any provider of health care, services, and support in a medical setting, at home, or in the community, including agencies (foster care, services for people with intellectual or developmental disabilities), assisted living facilities, behavioral health services, case management, clinics, community-based social support, dental services, emergency services, home health, home-based social support, hospitals, non-emergent medical transport, nursing services, OB/GYN, pediatrics, primary care, other physician services, residential facilities, self-directed providers, and substance abuse facilities.

To be eligible to apply, the applicant must have either:

• Billed Medicare fee-for-service during the period of Jan.1, 2019-Dec. 31, 2019; or
• Be a Medicare Part A provider that experienced a change in ownership and billed Medicare fee-for-service in 2019 or 2020 that prevented the otherwise eligible provider from receiving Phase 1 General Distribution payment; or
• Billed Medicaid / CHIP programs or Medicaid managed care plans for health-related services between Jan. 1, 2018 – Dec. 31, 2019; or
• Billed a health insurance company for oral healthcare-related services as a dental service provider; or
• Be a licensed dental service provider who does not accept insurance and has billed patients for oral healthcare-related services; or
• Be an approved assisted living facility.

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

• Filed a federal income tax return for fiscal years 2017, 2018, 2019; or be exempt from filing a return
• Provided patient care after January 31, 2020 (Note: patient care includes health care, services and support, as provided in a medical setting, at home, or in the community)
• Did not permanently cease providing patient care directly or indirectly
• For individuals, reported on Form 1040 (or other tax form) gross receipts or sales from providing patient care

Note: Receipt of funds from SBA and FEMA for coronavirus recovery or of Medicaid HCBS retainer payments does not preclude a healthcare provider from being eligible.

For detailed information on eligibility for Phase 2 General Distribution, read the Eligibility FAQs.

Providers that are not eligible for the Phase 2 General Distribution may be eligible for future distributions.

Applicants must enter their Tax ID Number (TIN) for validation in the Provider Relief Fund Application and Attestation Portal by Sunday, September 13, 2020 at 11:59 pm ET to be considered for funding. All applicants who register by the deadline will be considered.

If the TIN is recognized, begin with Step 4. Recognized TINS are verified on a state-provided 3rd party list.

If the TIN is not recognized:

1. Applicant registers in the Provider Relief Fund Application and Attestation Portal and enters TIN.*
   *Process applies only to Medicaid / CHIP / Dental / Assisted Living Facility providers
2. HHS shares unrecognized provider TINs with 3rd party validators, including Medicaid / CHIP agencies, dental organizations, national provider organizations, etc. (Timing: 7-10 business days)
3. Validator reviews applicant information for eligibility (e.g. actively in practice, in good standing, etc.) and shares results with HRSA (Timing: 7-10 days)**
   **Assumes validator responds within requested timeframe; majority of validators respond by requested deadline
4. HRSA accepts determination, updates portal, and notifies applicant they can apply (Timing: 3-5 business days)
5. Applicant re-enters portal and completes application for payments (Timing: 10-14 business days)

Depending on TIN validation, disbursements generally take 5-7 weeks.

For more information on Tax ID Numbers (TINs), read the TIN Validation FAQs.

The application period closed on September 13, 2020 for new submissions.

To learn about the application process:

• Watch a recording: Register/log in to watch a previous webinar session. Please note: webinar recording references previous deadline of Aug. 28, 2020; deadline has been extended to Sept. 13, 2020

• Download a presentation that explains the steps to apply for funding

For reference:

• Application Instructions
• Sample Application Form  For reference only. All applications must be submitted through the Provider Relief Application and Attestation Portal.

Required documentation:

• Most recent federal income tax return for 2017, 2018, or 2019, unless exempt
• Quarterly Federal Tax Return (IRS Form 941 for Q1 2020) or Federal Unemployment Tax Return (IRS Form 940)
• Revenue worksheet (if required by Field 15)

For detailed information about how to apply for Phase 2 General Distribution, read the Application Process FAQs.

Providers may receive up to a total of 2% of reported revenue from patient care.

• Payments will be disbursed on a rolling basis, as information is validated
• All Provider Relief Fund distributions will be paid to the Filing / Organizational TIN, and not directly to subsidiary TINs

For more detailed information on receiving payment, please see Provider Relief Fund FAQs

Recipients who receive Provider Relief Fund payments must accept or reject funds within 90 days* through the Provider Relief Fund Application and Attestation Portal.

*Not actively attesting within 90 days will be viewed as acceptance.

• To accept payment, the recipient must agree to the terms and conditions of the payment.
• To reject payment, the recipient must return funds to HHS within 15 calendar days of the attestation and may still be considered for future distributions

Requirements from the Provider Relief Fund terms and conditions include (not exhaustive):

• To be eligible, provider must have provided diagnosis, testing, or care for actual or possible COVID-19 patients on or after Jan.31, 2020 (Note: HHS broadly views every patient as a possible case of COVID-19 for purposes of eligibility)
• Payment will be used to prevent, prepare for, and respond to coronavirus, and reimburse healthcare-related expenses or lost revenues attributable to coronavirus
• Payment will not be used for expenses or losses that have been or will be reimbursed from other sources
• Recipient consents to public disclosure of payment

For information about how to accept the funds, see the Attestation FAQs, the Terms and Conditions FAQs, and review the Terms and Conditions.

For information about how to reject the funds, read the Rejecting Payments FAQs.

All recipients of Provider Relief Fund payments are required to comply with the reporting requirements described in the Terms and Conditions and specified in future directions issued by the HHS Secretary.

HHS will require recipients to submit future reports relating to the recipient's use of Provider Relief Fund money.

Provider Relief Fund payments may be used to cover lost revenue attributable to COVID-19 or health-related expenses purchased to prevent, prepare for, and respond to coronavirus, including but not limited to:

• Supplies
• Equipment
• Workforce training
• Reporting COVID-19 test results to federal, state, or local governments
• Building or constructing temporary structures for COVID-19 patient care or non-COVID-19 patients in a separate area
• Acquiring additional resources, including facilities, supplies, or staffing to expand or preserve care delivery
• Developing and staffing emergency operation centers

Recipients of >$10,000 will be required to submit reports about the use of their Provider Relief Fund distribution distribution. See the General and Targeted Distribution Post-Payment Notice of Reporting Requirement.

For additional information, read the Auditing and Reporting Requirements FAQs.