UPDATES from HHS on the Provider Relief Funds – Application Deadline Extended to 8/28
Dear Client,
HHS announced some major updates on the Provider Relief Fund (PRF) including extending the application deadline to August 28.
Starting the week of Aug. 10, and through Aug. 28:
- Dentists who previously received small automatic payments from the General (Medicare) Distribution due to Medicare billings will be allowed to apply and receive additional funding.
- Dentists who experienced a recent change in ownership may submit their revenue information along with documentation proving a change in ownership for consideration for PRF payment.
On July 22nd we sent an update listing some concerns related to the HHS Provider Relief Funds and also included a copy of the terms and conditions. Some of those concerns were related to the balance billing language as well as the reporting requirements. There have been recent updates as follows:
Term on Balance Billing (as clarified in the ADA hosted webinar on Tuesday 8/28)
- Qualifying for payment from the PRF has to do with past treatment earlier this year when HHS broadly viewed every patient as a possible case of COVID-19.
- Balance billing prohibitions apply only to treating current active COVID-19 patients with a medical record that supports a diagnosis of COVID-19.
- Presumptive and Possible cases are not defined the same way.
- Dental providers who are not caring for patients with presumptive or actual cases of COVID-19 are not subject to balance billing prohibitions.
- ‘Presumptive’ is defined as a case where a patient’s medical record supports a diagnosis of COVID-19.
- HHS thinks few, if any, dentists are performing dental work on active COVID patients, so there should be very few dental patients covered by this requirement.
Reporting Requirements (as clarified in the ADA hosted webinar on Tuesday 8/28)
- HHS posted a notice on 7/20 stating that detailed instructions regarding future reporting will be released on 8/17 and will apply to payments exceeding $10,000
- The reporting system will become available for reporting on 10/1 and will allow providers to demonstrate compliance with the terms and conditions including the use of funds for allowable purposes.
- Reports are due by 2/15/2021
- Recipients of PRF payments do not need to submit a separate quarterly report to HHS or the Pandemic Response Accountability Committee. HHS will handle these quarterly reports.
For more information, you are encouraged to watch the ADA recorded webinar from 8/28. Use the link below to get to the ADA website page that has the link to the recorded video – it’s about an hour long. You need to scroll down the page to the section titled “The Latest” and look for Webinar: Updates on the SBA Loans, Provider Relief Fund, Labor Issues and Congressional Action.
https://success.ada.org/en/practice-management/patients/infectious-diseases-2019-novel-coronavirus?utm_source=adaorg&utm_medium=globalheader&utm_content=coronavirus&utm_campaign=covid-19
Note: If you received an EIDL loan, per the EIDL loan agreement, you need to report to the SBA any proceeds received from other government sources and they will determine if the funds are a duplication of benefits. You will need to notify them via email at [email protected]. Be sure to include your loan and application numbers found at the top of your loan paperwork (SBA Form 1391)
Please feel free to contact our office if you have any questions about this program.
