LaHood Announces Over $81.5 Million in CARES Funding for IL18 Health Providers

[May 19, 2020]  Congressman Darin LaHood (R-IL) announced that the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) allocated $81,502,587.01 in funding for health care providers in Illinois’ 18th Congressional District from the first tranche of the Provider Relief Fund authorized in the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. 535 providers in IL-18, including hospitals, rural healthcare facilities and clinics, and providers who billed Medicare were eligible to receive this funding.

In addition, 228 rural providers statewide will receive $352 million from HHS in the third tranche of funding dedicated specifically to rural communities. A total of $100 billion was allocated by Congress in the CARES Act to support our healthcare providers with an additional $75 billion authorized in follow up legislation.

“COVID—19 is impacting communities across central and west-central Illinois, and the heroes of this pandemic are the brave health care workers on the frontlines of this fight who are keeping our communities safe,” said Rep. LaHood. “Rural providers have been devastated by this pandemic. Congress took important steps to provide relief to hospitals, health care providers, and workers through the four pieces of legislation passed to fight COVID-19. This critical federal funding will help our health care community get through this difficult time and bring needed relief to rural Illinois.”

Background:

HHS delivered $30 billion in general relief funding directly to providers across the country in support of the national response to COVID-19 as part of the larger distribution of the $175 billion Provider Relief Fund included in the CARES Act and subsequent legislation.

Recognizing the importance of delivering these funds in a fair and transparent manner, this initial broad-based distribution of the $30 billion went to hospitals and providers across the United States based on their share of 2019 Medicare Fee-For-Service (FFS) reimbursements. This includes the $81 million in funding for 535 providers in Illinois’ 18th District.

A second tranche $20 billion is being distributed on a rolling basis as a follow up to this general relief funding, as well as $10 billion for COVID-19 hotspots.

The third tranche HHS has also begun to distribute is $10 billion in direct support for rural providers, giving hospitals, Critical Access Hospitals, and rural acute care general hospitals a minimum of $1 million each, with additional payments based on operating expenses. Rural Health Clinics, Community Health Centers, and other health clinics will receive a minimum of $100,000, with possible additional payments based on operating expenses. This tranche includes $352 million in funding for rural hospitals in Illinois.

Eligible providers will begin receiving funds in the coming days via direct deposit, based on the physical address of the facilities as reported to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) and the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), regardless of their affiliation with organizations based in urban areas.

These are payments, not loans, to health providers, and will not need to be repaid.

More information from HHS HERE.

[Congressman Darin LaHood]