The Federal Communications Commission’s Wireline Competition Bureau has extended the deadline for recipients of COVID-19 Telehealth Program funding to purchase eligible telehealth devices and implement services to December 31. Read more here.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has allocated $20 billion for a Phase 3 CARES Act Provider Relief Funds (PRF) distribution.  Behavioral health care providers and new providers that began practicing in the first quarter of 2020 may submit applications for payment between October 5 and November 6.  Providers who previously received, rejected, or accepted a General Distribution PRF payment of two percent of annual revenue from patient care may also apply for this round of funding. Find more information here.

Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf announced that an additional $96 million in state grants have been approved for 5,373 Pennsylvania small businesses that were impacted by the business closure order due to the COVID-19 public health crisis. 

Businesses in every county were approved for grants in this round of funding, and 52 percent are historically disadvantaged businesses.

To date, more than 10,000 businesses were approved for $192 million in grants through the COVID-19 Relief Statewide Small Business Assistance Program.

“The COVID-19 pandemic has been caused a lot of hardship for our business community, and it has been particularly difficult for Pennsylvania’s small businesses to weather the economic effects of this crisis. Pennsylvania’s small business owners are community-focused employers, and they drive our economy, so they deserve our support as we continue to navigate this public health crisis,” Gov. Wolf said. “As we seek to recover, and rebuild our economy following the downturn caused by this pandemic, it’s critical that we provide opportunities for these businesses to recover and rebound, and this funding will provide much-needed support for businesses in communities across the state.”

The governor announced this funding at the Broad Street Market in Harrisburg and was joined by public officials and the owners of two local businesses: D.McGee Design Studio, located in the market, which was approved for a $10,000 grant, and Gifted Hands Barber Studio, located on 3^rd Street near the market, which was approved for a $5,000 grant.

The COVID-19 Relief Statewide Small Business Assistance funding was developed in partnership with state lawmakers and allocated through the state budget, which included $2.6 billion in federal stimulus funds through the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act, of which $225 million was earmarked for relief for small businesses.

The Department of Community and Economic Development (DCED) distributed the funds to the Pennsylvania Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs), which are administering the grants.

“We’ve seen the impact of this pandemic-fueled economic crisis on the small businesses in our communities. We targeted these funds to reach the smallest and most vulnerable businesses across the state and as CDFIs, we were able to mobilize our networks to reach those who have been hardest hit by the pandemic,” said James Burnett, vice chair of the PA CDFI Network and executive director of the West Philadelphia Financial Services Institution. “The PA CDFI Network is grateful for the partnership of Governor Wolf and the Pennsylvania Legislature as we move quickly to get these resources into the hands of those most impacted by the crisis.”

“I am extremely proud we were able to work together and to get much needed grants to the small businesses across the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania that serve as the backbone to our economy,” said state Senator Vincent Hughes (D-Philadelphia/Montgomery). “With that said, this should not be the end of the push to help our small business community. There are still CARES dollars available and thousands of businesses that have applied for this program seeking relief and the General Assembly must prioritize focusing on those needs and getting our people through this pandemic.”

Providers are encouraged to apply for the latest round of Provider Relief Fund (PRF) support. Applications will be considered regardless of whether your organization was previously eligible for, applied for, received, accepted, or rejected prior PRF payments. For this newest phase, funding will be allocated to providers based on assessed financial losses and changes in operating expenses caused by COVID-19.  For more information about the Phase 3-General Distribution, please visit the Provider Relief Fund webpage.

Apply here through November 6
Register for the webcast on October 15 at 3 p.m. ET to learn more.

Healthcare Dive

Hospitals now must send CMS their seasonal flu data alongside COVID-19 data or risk losing Medicare and Medicaid funding, senior officials announced at a press conference Tuesday.

Beginning Wednesday, hospitals will receive notice whether they are in line with current reporting requirements, CMS Administrator Seema Verma said. They will be issued guidance on how to correct course and then given 14 weeks, or four notices, to do so.

CMS in August issued an interim final rule mandating hospitals send their COVID-19 data to federal agencies or risk losing funding, swiftly chided as “heavy-handed” by the American Hospital Association. AHA said this announcement answers some of the questions posed since the initial rule, and excludes psychiatric and rehabilitation hospitals, which generally do not treat COVID-19 patients, from reporting.

HHS wants to know how many COVID-19 cases, influenza cases and days on hand of personal protective equipment hospitals have — or it will revoke federal reimbursement.

Those data points and a slew of others will be used to direct federal resources to hospitals and communities in the highest need as influenza season and the COVID-19 pandemic clash, HHS Ambassador Deborah Birx said during a Tuesday call with reporters.

A harsh flu season coinciding with continued hot spots of novel coronavirus activity could respark concerns of hospital capacity that surfaced in the beginning of the crisis.

CDC Director Robert Redfield said while the agency has always collected seasonal flu data, the new requirements will “give us a fuller picture of what is happening hospital to hospital regarding influenza.”

“It is uncertain what will happen this fall and winter,” Redfield said. “However, CDC is preparing for there to be a COVID-19 and seasonal influenza activity at the same time. As Americans spend more time indoors this fall and winter, and people start going back to work and school, the risk of flu and COVID will only rise.”

Earlier into the pandemic, HHS sent out one-time data requests to hospitals to aid in distribution of remdesivir and other needed treatments or supplies. HHS said in a fact sheet that the daily reporting is now the sole mechanism for distribution calculations heading into winter.

Hospitals already must submit reports on COVID-19 testing, capacity and utilization under the August rule. Now they must submit daily data on total hospitalized patients with laboratory-confirmed influenza, previous day’s influenza admissions and total ICU patients with laboratory-confirmed influenza. They’ll also have to submit numbers on total hospitalized patients with both laboratory-confirmed COVID-19 and influenza, and previous day’s deaths for patients with both COVID-19 and influenza.

The guidance on reporting can be found at: https://www.hhs.gov/sites/default/files/covid-19-faqs-hospitals-hospital-laboratory-acute-care-facility-data-reporting.pdf