Complete Story
06/18/2020
AAHomecare Working to Secure Equitable Treatment for Providers Denied Substantial Medicaid-Based Relief
Breaking News from AAHomecare
As noted last week, HHS opened the application portal for CARES Act relief for Medicaid/CHIP-only providers. The new round of relief is for healthcare providers who have directly billed their state Medicaid/CHIP programs or Medicaid managed care plans between Jan. 1, 2018 and May 31, 2020, and did not qualify for the Medicare-based $50 billion general distribution.
AAHomecare is working with its members regarding issues that have developed with the Medicaid portion of the Provider Relief Program. Suppliers have reported that they have been denied any Medicaid-related relief because they received small Medicare relief payments. Even companies who declined to accept first tranche payments that were automatically sent to suppliers are ineligible for any Medicaid-based relief.
We believe that this was an unintended consequence of rolling out the relief program so quickly. There was also a lack of clarity about suppliers eligibility and how each tranche of payments related to the others.
AAHomecare has reached out to the Administration about the issue and will work with Congress to ensure suppliers are eligible for relief that reflects their service to beneficiaries under Medicare and Medicaid.
Medicaid-Based Provider Relief Application Deadline Extended to July 20
HHS has also extended the deadline to apply for this round of relief to July 20, 2020.
Here are some related materials for the Medicaid/CHIP Provider Relief Fund:
- Instructions for the Medicaid Provider Distribution
- Medicaid Application Provider Relief Application Form
- Portal User Guide
- Medicaid Relief Fund Payment Terms & Conditions
- CARES Provider Relief Fund FAQs
In addition, HHS will be hosting two webcasts on the application process for this funding stream. Interested suppliers should pre-register for your preferred timeslot:
Guidance and FAQs Continue to Evolve
We recommend suppliers to regularly check the Provider Relief Fund website, as it is frequently updated with new information. The updated FAQ includes some information on the quarterly reporting requirements for suppliers that received at least $150,000:
The Terms and Conditions for all Provider Relief Fund payments require recipients who receive at least $150,000 in the aggregate from any statute primarily making appropriations for the coronavirus response to submit quarterly reports to HHS and the Pandemic Response Accountability Committee. This requirement is from section 15011 of the CARES Act. What do providers need to do in order to be in compliance with this provision in the Terms and Conditions? (Added 6/13/2020) - page 9. Recipients of Provider Relief Fund payments do not need to submit a separate quarterly report to HHS or the Pandemic Response Accountability Committee. HHS will develop a report containing all information necessary for recipients of Provider Relief Fund payments to comply with this provision. For all providers who attest to receiving a Provider Relief Fund payment and agree to the Terms and Conditions (or retain such a payment for more than 90 days), HHS is posting the names of payment recipients and their payment amounts on its public website here. HHS Is also working with the Department of Treasury to reflect the aggregate total of each recipient’s attested to Provider Relief Fund payments on USAspending.gov. Posting these data meets the reporting requirements of the CARES Act. See Appendix A of OMB Memo M-20-21 [Implementation Guidance for Supplemental Funding Provided in Response to the Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19)].
