The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), through the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), is announcing the details of the next CARES Act-authorized nursing home Provider Relief Fund (PRF) distribution.
Consistent with the Administration’s announcement in late July, the PRF distribution will total approximately $5 billion, and will be used to protect residents of nursing homes and long-term care facilities from the impact of COVID-19…..
The $5 billion distribution will provide approximately $2.5 billion in upfront funding to support increased testing, staffing, and PPE needs. There will also be funding available for those establishing COVID isolation facilities. Unlike prior distributions, however, the balance of the $5 billion will be linked to nursing home performance. Almost 40% of all U.S. COVID-19 deaths, totaling tens of thousands of Americans, are nursing-home related, and the intent of the performance-based distribution will be to ensure the Federal Government is paying for better outcomes. Evaluation of performance will consider the prevalence of the virus in the nursing home’s local geography, and will be based on the nursing home’s ability within this context to minimize COVID spread and COVID-related fatalities among its residents.