Provider Relief Fund General Information

The Terms and Conditions for Phase 4 require that recipients that receive payments greater than $10,000 notify HHS during the applicable Reporting Time Period of any mergers with or acquisitions of any other health care provider that occurred within the relevant Payment Received Period. HRSA considers changes in ownership, mergers/acquisitions, and consolidations to be reportable events.

(Added 12/9/2021)

If a Reporting Entity that received a Phase 4 General Distribution payment undergoes a merger or acquisition during the Payment Received Period, as described in the Post-Payment Notice of Reporting Requirements (PDF - 233 KB), the Reporting Entity must report the merger or acquisition during the applicable Reporting Time Period.

(Updated 12/9/2021)

If a Reporting Entity that received a Phase 4 General payment indicates when they report on the use of funds that they have undergone a merger or acquisition during the applicable Payment Received Period, this information will be a component that is factored into whether an entity is audited.

(Updated 12/9/2021)

The Provider Relief Fund Terms and Conditions require that recipients be able to demonstrate that lost revenues or expenses attributable to coronavirus, excluding expenses and losses that have been reimbursed from other sources or that other sources are obligated to reimburse, meet or exceed total payments from the Provider Relief Fund. Provider Relief Fund payment amounts that have not been fully expended on health care expenses or lost revenues attributable to coronavirus by the deadline to use funds that corresponds to the Payment Received Period must be returned to HHS. The Provider Relief Fund Terms and Conditions and applicable legal requirements authorize HHS to audit Provider Relief Fund recipients now or in the future to ensure that program requirements are met. Provider Relief Fund payments that were made incorrectly, or exceed lost revenues or expenses due to coronavirus, or do not otherwise meet applicable legal and program requirements must be returned to HHS, and HHS is authorized to recover these funds.

(Updated 10/20/2021)

Providers that have Provider Relief Fund payments that they cannot expend on allowable expenses or lost revenues by the deadline to use funds that corresponds to the Payment Received Period, as outlined in the Post-Payment Notice of Reporting Requirements, will return this money to HHS. The Provider Relief Fund Terms and Conditions and legal requirements authorize HHS to audit Provider Relief Fund recipients now or in the future to ensure that program requirements are met. HHS is authorized to recover any Provider Relief Fund amounts that were made incorrectly or exceed lost revenues or expenses due to coronavirus, or do not otherwise meet applicable legal and program requirements.

(Updated 10/20/2021)

Providers receiving payments from the Provider Relief Fund must comply with the Terms and Conditions and applicable legal and program requirements. Failure by a provider that received a payment to comply with any term or condition can result in action by HHS to recover some or all of the payment. Per the Terms and Conditions, all recipients will be required to submit documents to substantiate that these funds were used for health care-related expenses or lost revenues attributable to coronavirus, and that those expenses or lost revenues were not reimbursed from other sources and other sources were not obligated to reimburse them. HHS monitors the funds distributed, and oversees payments to ensure that Federal dollars are used in accordance with applicable legal and program requirements. In addition, the HHS Office of the Inspector General fights fraud, waste and abuse in HHS programs, and may review these payments.

(Updated 10/20/2021)

If HHS identifies a payment made incorrectly, HHS will recover the amount paid incorrectly or overpaid. If a provider receives a payment that is greater than expected and believes the payment was made incorrectly, the provider should contact the Provider Support Line at 866-569-3522 (for TYY, dial 711) and seek clarification.

(Updated 10/14/2021)

To streamline the process and minimize provider burden, this information will be collected in the Provider Relief Fund Reporting Portal as part of the regular reporting process. Additional reporting information will be forthcoming for impacted providers.

(Added 9/29/2021)

The provider must return any unused funds to the government within 30 calendar days after the end of the applicable Reporting Time Period or any associated grace period.

(Updated 9/29/2021)

Yes. Providers have at least 12 months, and as much as 18 months, based on the payment received date, to control and use the payments for expenses and lost revenues attributable to coronavirus incurred during the Period of Availability.

The payment is considered received on the deposit date for automated clearing house (ACH) payments, or the check cashed date for all other payments.

Provider Relief Fund recipients must use payments only for eligible expenses, including services rendered and lost revenues attributable to coronavirus, incurred by the end of the Period of Availability that corresponds to the Payment Received Period. Providers are required to maintain supporting documentation that demonstrates that costs were incurred during the Period of Availability, as required under the Terms and Conditions. However, providers are not required to submit that documentation when reporting. Providers must promptly submit copies of such supporting documentation upon the request of the Secretary of HHS. Examples of costs incurred for an entity using accrual accounting, during the Period of Availability include:

• Services that were received
• Renovation or construction that was completed
• Tangible property ordered, but need not have been delivered

For purchases of tangible items made using PRF payments, the purchase does not need to be in the provider’s possession (i.e., back ordered PPE, ambulance, etc.) to be considered an eligible expense but the costs must be incurred by the end of the Period of Availability. Providers must follow their basis of accounting (e.g., cash, accrual, or modified accrual) to determine expenses. For projects that are a bundle of services and purchases of tangible items that cannot be separated, such as capital projects, construction projects, or alteration and renovation projects, the project costs cannot be reimbursed using Provider Relief Fund payments unless the project was fully completed by the end of Period of Availability associated with the Payment Received Period.

Recipients may use payments for eligible expenses or lost revenues incurred prior to receipt of those payments (i.e., pre-award costs) so long as they are to prevent, prepare for, and respond to coronavirus. However, HHS expects that it would be highly unusual for providers to have incurred eligible expenses or lost revenues prior to January 1, 2020.

HHS reserves the right to audit Provider Relief Fund recipients now or in the future, and may pursue collection activity to recover any Provider Relief Fund payment amounts that have not been supported by documentation or payments not used in a manner consistent with program requirements or applicable law. All payment recipients must attest to the Terms and Conditions, which require maintaining documentation to substantiate that these funds were used for health care-related expenses or lost revenues attributable to coronavirus.

(Updated 8/30/2021)

No. Providers do not need to be able to prove that prior and/or future lost revenues and expenses attributable to COVID-19 (excluding those covered by other sources of reimbursement) meet or exceed their Provider Relief Fund payment at the time they accept such a payment. Providers must report on the use of Provider Relief Fund payments in accordance with legal and program requirements in the relevant Reporting Time Period. Recipients may use payments for eligible expenses incurred prior to receipt of those payments (i.e., pre-award costs) so long as they are to prevent, prepare for, and respond to coronavirus. Providers must follow their basis of accounting to determine expenses. Duplication of expenses and lost revenues is not permitted. All recipients are subject to audit.

(Updated 6/11/2021)

No, this is not a permissible use of Provider Relief Fund payments.

(Added 10/9/2020)

All recipients receiving payments under the Provider Relief Fund will be required to comply with the Terms and Conditions. Some Terms and Conditions relate to the provider's use of the funds, and thus they apply until the provider has exhausted these funds.  Other Terms and Conditions apply to a longer time period, for example, regarding maintaining all records pertaining to expenditures under the Provider Relief Fund payment for three years from the date of the final expenditure.

(Added 6/19/2020)

Unless the payment is associated with specific claims for reimbursement for COVID-19 testing or treatment provided on or after February 4, 2020 to uninsured patients, under the Terms and Conditions associated with payment, providers are eligible only if they provide or provided after January 31, 2020, diagnoses, testing or care for individuals with possible or actual cases of COVID-19. HHS broadly views every patient as a possible case of COVID-19.

Not every possible case of COVID-19 is a presumptive case of COVID 19.

(Added 5/6/2020)

The Terms and Conditions state that none of the funds appropriated in this title shall be used to pay the salary of an individual, through a grant or other mechanism, at a rate in excess of Executive Level II. The salary limitation is based upon the Executive Level II of the Federal Executive Pay Scale. Effective January 5, 2020, the Executive Level II salary is $197,300. For the purposes of the salary limitation, the direct salary is exclusive of fringe benefits and indirect costs. The limitation only applies to the rate of pay charged to Provider Relief Fund payments and other HHS awards. An organization receiving Provider Relief Funds may pay an individual's salary amount in excess of the salary cap with non-federal funds.

(Added 5/29/2020)

The "statutory provisions" listed in the Terms and Conditions apply to the Provider Relief Fund payment associated with those Terms and Conditions.  Those statutory provisions may also independently apply to other government funding that you receive.

(Added 6/8/2020)