Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar announced Friday "that the Trump administration will use a $100 billion hospital and provider relief fund to reimburse hospitals at Medicare rates for uncompensated covid-19 care for the uninsured," Rachel Cohrs reports for Modern Healthcare. "Azar said the funds will be distributed through the Public Health and Social Services Emergency Fund, which supports the National Disaster Medical System."
Azar didn't say how much of the $100 billion fund would be used for such reimbursement, but gave some other specifications. "Azar said that hospitals receiving relief funds would be banned from balance billing, but did not specify what cost-sharing obligations could be imposed for uninsured covid-19 patients or whether ancillary providers would be included in the ban," Cohrs reports.
Kaiser Health News did some well-informed spitballing, and estimated that, at most, the federal government would need to pay out a little over $40 billion to cover uninsured covid-19 patients.
Hospitals will likely end up treating many such patients, because people often lose their insurance when laid off. Hospitals face other financial strains; most have been obliged to scale back or end elective procedures that would bring in revenue, Cohrs notes. That strain is particularly acute for rural hospitals, which were already hurting before the pandemic, Lois Beckett reports for The Guardian.
Meanwhile, hospitals struggle to get critical supplies to treat covid-19 patients or prevent the disease's spread, and many say the federal government has been the biggest roadblock. Many report that the Federal Emergency Mangement Agency repeatedly outbids them for supplies, and some say FEMA is seizing supply orders before they arrive, Noah Levey reports for the Los Angeles Times.
PeaceHealth, a system in the Pacific Northwest that operates several rural clinics, said the government seized a shipment of testing supplies recently, Levey reports.
Azar didn't say how much of the $100 billion fund would be used for such reimbursement, but gave some other specifications. "Azar said that hospitals receiving relief funds would be banned from balance billing, but did not specify what cost-sharing obligations could be imposed for uninsured covid-19 patients or whether ancillary providers would be included in the ban," Cohrs reports.
Kaiser Health News did some well-informed spitballing, and estimated that, at most, the federal government would need to pay out a little over $40 billion to cover uninsured covid-19 patients.
Hospitals will likely end up treating many such patients, because people often lose their insurance when laid off. Hospitals face other financial strains; most have been obliged to scale back or end elective procedures that would bring in revenue, Cohrs notes. That strain is particularly acute for rural hospitals, which were already hurting before the pandemic, Lois Beckett reports for The Guardian.
Meanwhile, hospitals struggle to get critical supplies to treat covid-19 patients or prevent the disease's spread, and many say the federal government has been the biggest roadblock. Many report that the Federal Emergency Mangement Agency repeatedly outbids them for supplies, and some say FEMA is seizing supply orders before they arrive, Noah Levey reports for the Los Angeles Times.
PeaceHealth, a system in the Pacific Northwest that operates several rural clinics, said the government seized a shipment of testing supplies recently, Levey reports.
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