Essential hospitals should contact their congressional delegations now to share the association's COVID-19 priorities letter and urge lawmakers to pursue a COVID-19 supplemental appropriations package.

The Build Back Better Act, now under consideration in the Senate, contains damaging cuts to Medicaid disproportionate share hospital and uncompensated care pool payments and lacks critical infrastructure funding for essential hospitals.

America’s Essential Hospitals and members of Congress agree: the interim rule does not accurately reflect congressional intent. Instead, it includes a lopsided IDR method that favors insurers.

When contacting your delegation, emphasize the need to consider essential hospitals when crafting legislation related to infrastructure, emergency preparedness, COVID-19 relief, and the 340B Drug Pricing Program.

Rep. Tom O’Halleran (D-Ariz.) introduced H.R. 1846 to reauthorize the Hill-Burton program and allocate $10 billion over five years for hospital construction and modernization. It is imperative to build robust support for H.R. 1846 now.

Lawmakers will be back home for the Memorial Day recess. Take advantage of this time to contact your Senate and House members and remind them of timely essential hospital priorities.

If Congress does not take action, providers could face a cumulative 6 percent cut to Medicare payments. Urge your House delegation to vote in favor of H.R. 1868 during the floor vote this week.

The budget reconciliation package now moving through Congress does not include additional funding for hospitals. Members should contact their senators today and urge them to support essential hospital priorities in COVID-19 relief legislation.

Urge your senators and representatives to contact congressional leadership immediately and demand legislation before the end of the year that includes essential hospital priorities. 

A bipartisan letter circulating in the House urges HHS Secretary Alex Azar to rescind a harmful Sept. 19 notice that changed Provider Relief Fund (PRF) reporting requirements, potentially forcing essential hospitals and other providers to return portions of previously dispersed funds.

We strongly support this letter and oppose the damaging actions by manufacturers to undermine the 340B program for covered entities, including essential hospitals.

Republican and Democratic leaders now are negotiating what policies to include in a final version of the fourth COVID-19 legislative package. Now is the time to contact your Senators and Representatives and push for additional COVID-19 relief for essential hospitals.

Senate leaders have indicated they will develop and try to pass a “phase four” COVID-19 bill by the end of this month. Members should contact their senators now and urge them to support key essential hospital priorities in the next COVID-19 relief package.

As Congress considers a potential fourth COVID-19 legislative package, contact your House and Senate lawmakers immediately and urge them to support essential hospitals’ priorities.

The association sent House and Senate leaders a letter detailing the needs of essential hospitals as they face the COVID-19 outbreak. Members of America's Essential Hospitals should urge lawmakers to support the priorities in our letter.

America’s Essential Hospitals encourages members to submit by Feb. 1 comments to CMS detailing the devastating impact of the MFAR’s proposed provisions and to urge House and Senate members to weigh in with the administration.