As senators continue to contemplate the next COVID-19 package, the association is calling on member hospitals to contact their senators and urge them to include essential hospital relief measures in future supplemental legislation.
America’s Essential Hospitals in a recent letter to Senate leadership outlined essential hospital priorities, including:
- ensuring adequate COVID-19 provider relief funding for hospitals filling a safety-net role;
- blocking the Medicaid Fiscal Accountability Regulation and protecting Medicaid disproportionate share hospital (DSH) payments;
- making permanent changes to telehealth policy; and
- forgiving, or at a minimum relieving, Medicare accelerated and advanced payment loans.
Senators will return to Washington next week; before leaving for the July recess, leadership indicated lawmakers will develop and attempt to pass another COVID-19 legislative package before the August recess.
House Committees Continue Work on COVID-19, Spending Bills
Meanwhile, House committees continue work on COVID-19 oversight and fiscal year (FY) 2021 spending bills.
Of note for essential hospitals, the House Committee on Appropriations on July 13 marked up the Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies FY 2021 appropriations bill.
