State health leaders are encouraging physicians who treat Medicaid and Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) patients to apply for federal COVID-19 relief funds before the Aug. 3 deadline.
In a press release dated July 24, Gov. Greg Abbott and the Texas Health and Human Services Commission (HHSC) said less than 5% of the state’s 27,351 eligible health care professionals have applied for payments through the Provider Relief Fund.
"These federal funds are available to cover costs incurred in the fight against COVID-19," said Michelle Alletto, HHSC chief program and services officer. "This funding can also help providers suffering economically because of the pandemic to ensure we have a strong provider base to continue to take care of Texans."
The deadline to apply has been extended to Monday, Aug. 3. To apply for funds, physicians should carefully review the specific Medicaid/CHIP Provider Relief Terms and Conditions.
Eligible applicants can receive at least 2% of reported gross revenue from patient care, the federal Health and Human Services (HHS) Department has said.
To be eligible, physicians and health care providers must not have received any payments from previous relief funds paid to physicians who participate in Medicare. Also, they must have billed their state Medicaid/CHIP programs or Medicaid managed care plans directly for health care-related services between Jan. 1, 2018, and May 31, 2020.
Congress in June made up to $15 billion from the fund available to eligible physicians who participate in state Medicaid and CHIP programs.
A key barrier to more physicians applying for funding is the federal requirement that if a practice has received any prior payment from the $50 billion general distribution fund, even payments less than $10, automatically disqualifies the applicant.
However, on a recent call with CMS officials, TMA urged that the agency establish a minimum threshold under which physicians whose primary business is Medicaid and CHIP would still be eligible to participate. TMA also recommended establishment of an appeals mechanism.
“Failure to apply for, and secure, relief funds will leave potentially billions of federal dollars otherwise available to Medicaid and CHIP providers in Texas unused,” the July 24 press release said.
To help you make informed decisions for your practice during the pandemic, TMA has published a Practice Viability Toolkit that provides up-to-date information and resources. The toolkit includes a section on cash flow, including loan assistance, lines of credit, payment deferrals, loan refinancing, and loans from private banks.
You can find the toolkit and other tools, resources, and information on the practice viability section of the TMA COVID-19 Resource Center.