CHEYENNE – U.S. Rep. Frank Lucas recently led two letters to U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar, expressing concerns over recent changes to the Provider Relief Fund reporting requirements.
After receiving feedback from members of Congress and other stakeholders, HHS has announced it will amend its reporting requirements, ensuring Oklahoma’s hospitals will have access to COVID-19 relief funds.
“At a time when so many are still struggling due to the COVID-19 pandemic, it is imperative that our nation’s hospitals and providers have the resources and assistance they need in order to keep our communities healthy,” Lucas said in a press release.
Authorized under the CARES Act, The Provider Relief Fund provides critical relief during the pandemic. These funds have been used to help protect the safety of frontline doctors and nurses, ensure access to quality care and, in many cases, help providers keep their doors open.
On Sept. 19, the Department of Health and Human Services announced changes to the PRF reporting requirements that would have forced many providers to return some of this funding and jeopardize patients’ access to care while the nation continues battling the pandemic.
In a recent letter led by Lucas and other members of Congress, Lucas wrote that HHS’ changes would represent “an about-face from the stipulations that HHS outlined months ago, which providers based their planning upon during an already tumultuous fiscal environment.” Lucas also wrote a letter with U.S. Sens. Jim Inhofe and James Lankford as well as the entire House delegation, saying HHS’ requirements would “disproportionately affect rural hospitals that already operate on thin margins.”
HHS amended the reporting requirements on Oct. 22 after receiving a consensus among lawmakers and stakeholders. The amended requirements provide for full applicability of PRF distributions to lost revenues.
As of Oct. 20, Oklahoma has received more than $1.13 million from HHS’ Provider Relief Fund.