Coronavirus update for Tuesday, May 12 as of 3:00 p.m.

Congress

House Democrats have unveiled their newest pandemic relief bill.  The overall bill is estimated to cost around $3 trillion.  A few of the health care provisions included in this bill are:

• $100 billion for eligible health care providers to be distributed through the Health Care Provider Relief Fund. This is in addition to the $175 billion Congress has already appropriated for providers.  This bill would include a prescriptive and structured methodology for distribution of the Health Care Provider Relief Fund that would include, among other things:
• quarterly relief funds based on hospital cost reports, with aid providers already received from the relief fund subtracted from the quarterly amount
• eligibility to receive up to 60 percent of revenue lost in comparison to the previous year, to help compensate for pandemic-related expenses
• a requirement that recipients not charge COVID-19 patients and not engage in balance billing
• Reduces interests rates and lengthens the payback period for Part A and Part B advance payments.
• $75 billion for testing, contact-tracing, and other activities.
• Prohibits the administration from finalizing the Medicaid Fiscal Accountability Rule (MFAR) during the current public health emergency.
• $7.6 billion to health centers.
• $4.5 billion to NIH to expand COVID-10-related research.
• $3 billion for the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA).
• Increases federal medical assistance percentage (FMAP) 14 percentage points from July 1, 2020 through June 30, 2021.
• Temporarily increases Medicaid DSH allotments to states by 2.5 percent.
• Eliminates cost-sharing for most patients for COVID-19 treatment.

These are only a few of the health care provisions included in this sprawling bill.  You can find a summary of the bill here and the text of the bill here.

The House is expected to vote on the bill this Friday but the Senate is working on its own plan and is not expected to take up any new pandemic relief legislation until after Memorial Day.

Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services

• Late Monday CMS published its proposed FY 2021 inpatient prospective payment system regulation.  NASH members received a memo summarizing the proposed rule late Tuesday afternoon.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

• The CDC has published information about factors to consider when purchasing ventilators from another country.
• The CDC has updated its FAQ on infection prevention and control in health care settings.
• The CDC has updates its interim laboratory biosafety guidelines for handling and processing specimens associated with COVID-19.

Food and Drug Administration

• The FDA has published guidance for industry and investigators addressing pre-investigational new drug application (IND) meeting requests for COVID-19-related drugs and biological products.

• The FDA has published guidance on developing drugs and biological products for the treatment or prevention of COVID-19.

• The FDA has issued an emergency use authorization for a specific commercial laboratory test to diagnose COVID-19.

Occupational Safety and Health Administration

• OSHA issued an alert with information about helping to keep dental industry practitioners safe during the COVID-19 emergency. See the announcement here and the alert itself here.

Federal Funding Opportunities for Hospitals

• NASH has prepared a document that collects and presents in one place the various new federal funding opportunities for hospitals resulting from legislation addressing the COVID-19 public health emergency.  Find that document here.

(To receive this daily update directly, sign up for our mailing list at info@safetynetalliance.org.)