Bipartisan group of lawmakers release COVID-19 relief legislation

A bipartisan group of senators and representatives yesterday released legislative text for both the Emergency Coronavirus Relief Act of 2020, a $748 billion COVID-19 relief package that boosts funding for health care providers, vaccines and testing, and the Bipartisan State and Local Support and Small Business Protections Act that provides $160 billion in state and local aid, as well as certain liability protections for employers, which extend to health care providers in some instances.

The main package would include $35 billion in additional funding for the Provider Relief Fund and make changes to the PRF reporting guidelines. Specifically, as urged by the AHA, the package would require the Department of Health and Human Services to revert back to its June reporting requirement guidance insofar as it allowed providers to use any reasonable method to calculate lost revenue. In addition, the package would allow health systems to move targeted PRF distributions within their system.

It is not clear what Senate and House leadership will do with the legislation, although it may provide the framework for COVID-19 relief that could be included as part of an omnibus government funding bill that could be taken up as early as this week.