Provider Relief Fund COVID-19 High-Impact Payments

The bipartisan CARES Act; the Paycheck Protection Program and Health Care Enhancement Act (PPPHCEA); and the Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations (CRRSA) Act provided $178 billion in relief funds to hospitals and other healthcare providers on the front lines of the coronavirus response. The Department of Health and Human Services through the Health Resources and Services Administration is distributing two rounds of payments to hospitals in High Impact areas for positive COVID-19 admissions. In the first round of the High Impact Allocation, $12 billion was distributed to nearly 400 hospitals who provided inpatient care for 100 or more COVID-19 patients through April 10, 2020. $2 billion of these payments was distributed to these hospitals based on their Medicare disproportionate share and uncompensated care payments. In the second round of funding, $10 billion will be distributed to hospitals having over 161 COVID-19 admissions between January 1 and June 10, 2020.