The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) on Tuesday said it is making more than $2 billion in Provider Relief Fund (PRF) Phase 4 distribution payments to providers, including nursing homes.
That brings the PRF Phase 4 total payments to $11 billion, on the heels of $9 billion released in December. This is in addition to nearly $7.5 billion via the Health Resources and Services Administration’s (HRSA) American Rescue Plan (ARP) rural payments.
More than 7,600 health care providers will receive payments this week, HHS said in a statement. Approximately 74,000 providers benefitted from Phase 4 distributions, and 82% of all Phase 4 applications have been processed.
Although HRSA didn’t break down disbursements by care setting, it did note payments by state.
Much like with the first batch in December, California had the highest number of recipients for January at 864 – $441.6 million was allocated to providers in the state. Texas had the second highest number of recipients at 648 for just under $100.2 million, followed by New York at 559 (just under $299.6 million) and Florida at 406 (just under $49.6 million).
Distributions during Phase 4 of the PRF have an “increased focus” on health equity, the agency said, with reimbursements accounting for a higher percentage of losses among small providers. “Bonus” payments were allocated to Medicaid and Medicare providers, along with those who participate in the Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP).
“This funding is just the latest example of the Biden-Harris administration’s dedication to ensuring that providers continue to have the resources they need to meet the evolving challenges presented by COVID-19 and keep providing critical services to the American people,” HHS Secretary Xavier Becerra said in a statement.
Late last week, national aging services organization LeadingAge penned a letter not to Becerra, but to President Joe Biden requesting the administration replenish PRF by $8 to $10 billion, among five other initiatives to support its members.
“The PRF well is running dry,” LeadingAge President and CEO Katie Smith Sloan said in the letter. “The latest round of PRF payments funded less than 45% of providers’ reported COVID-related lost revenues and expenses through the first quarter of 2021.”
Sloan refers to the December disbursements.
“Aging service providers, who serve older adults in both congregate settings and individual homes, continue to mount expenses for COVID-19 testing, adequate staffing, personal protective equipment and increasing costs of everyday products due to the pandemic,” Sloan said, maintaining that aging service providers should be prioritized in future funding rounds.
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