U.S. Senator Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.), is a member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, today applauded the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announcement of the first delivery of the initial funding to providers in support of the national response to the coronavirus (COVID-19). West Virginia will receive a total of $246,574,851 in funding within this first round. This funding is part of the distribution of the $100 billion provider relief fund included in the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act that Congress recently passed and President Donald J. Trump signed into law.
“It is my top priority to make sure everyone in our state has the resources they need to handle the effects of this pandemic. That includes our hospitals, health care professionals, and patients who are on the frontlines fighting this pandemic head-on. I am glad to see the quick delivery of these important funds to our hospitals that desperately need them. To be clear, this is only the first of several rounds of funding. As the additional funding from the CARES Act for health care providers is allocated, I will continue to make sure West Virginia’s needs are met, including those of our rural health providers,” Senator Capito said.
BACKGROUND:
According to HHS, the initial $30 billion in immediate relief funds will begin being delivered to providers today. Recognizing the importance of delivering the provider relief funds in a fast, fair, and transparent manner, this initial broad-based distribution of the relief funds will go to hospitals and providers across the United States that are enrolled in Medicare. Facilities and providers are allotted a portion of the $30 billion based on their share of 2019 Medicare fee-for-service (FFS) reimbursements. These are payments, not loans, to healthcare providers, and will not need to be repaid.