The Federation of American Hospitals (FAH) wants the next COVID-19 relief package to infuse an additional $32 billion in the provider relief fund and extend a moratorium on Medicare payment sequester cuts.
The hospital group’s letter (PDF), sent Monday to President Joe Biden and congressional leaders, comes as talks on a new package are heating up. A group of 10 Republican senators released Sunday their own proposal for Biden to consider and the president has proposed his own $1.9 trillion plan.
“The winter has been particularly challenging, and remains so, hitting new, unfortunate peaks in COVID-19 cases, hospitalizations and fatalities,” the letter said.
The $32 billion would be in addition to a $175 billion provider relief fund that has helped cover major losses among providers due to the pandemic. FAH wants the additional money to be targeted to rural providers and those in COVID-19 hot spots faced with overwhelming caseloads.
“To ensure both the short-term and long-term stability of the nation’s hospitals and healthcare infrastructure, we urge Congress and the administration to ensure the continued resources necessary to keep our doors open for our patients and communities,” the letter said.
The act also needs to ensure that healthcare providers are not subject to any taxes on the relief.
Another key ask is to extend a moratorium on a two percent cut to Medicare fee-for-service payments. The moratorium, installed as part of a spending package passed by Congress late last year, is set to expire at the end of March.
FAH wants the moratorium to last through the public health emergency period for COVID-19, which is expected to be extended through the rest of the year.
The group also seeks for the federal government to reimburse hospitals for the full costs of COVID-19 Medicare patients that have “extremely costly inpatient care.”
The CARES Act gave a 20% add-on to the inpatient Medicare payment for COVID-19 diagnoses. But this add-on may not be enough because of the extreme care and infection control practices needed as well.
It also calls for liability protection for healthcare professionals for any care surrounding COVID-19.
FAH is pressing for permanent changes to regulations for telehealth. The Department of Health and Human Services gave more flexibility for providers to get Medicare reimbursement for telehealth services, but those flexibilities are expected to end when the public health emergency expires.
FAH called on Congress to permanently remove geographic and originating site requirements and other barriers to telehealth flexibility.
The group also asks Congress to waive any penalties from the Hospital-Acquired Condition Reduction Program and Hospital Readmissions Reduction Program for any performance periods impacted by COVID-19. It should also suspend the Hospital Value-Based Purchasing Program for any fiscal years including the pandemic.
President Biden’s $1.9 trillion plan he proposed last month included $20 billion for a national vaccine program and $50 billion for testing capacity.
Democrats in Congress have considered using a parliamentary procedure called reconciliation that lets bills be passed in the Senate with a 51-vote majority, but only if the bill is restricted to federal spending measures.
However, a group of 10 Republican senators released a slimmed-down relief package that could get 60 votes in the Senate to end a legislative filibuster.
The package includes $160 billion to bolster testing, vaccines, personal protective equipment and other supplies.
Biden is set to meet with some of the senators on Monday to discuss the package.