Governor Cuomo Announces Actions to Address COVID-19 Clusters
Today (October 5th), Governor Cuomo held a press conference during which he made several announcements regarding new State actions to address COVID-19 outbreaks in New York State. The infection rate across the top 20 ZIP code “hotspots” was 5.5 percent yesterday, which includes neighborhoods in Brooklyn, Queens, Orange County, and Rockland County. Without the hotspot clusters, the statewide infection rate was 1.01 percent. The statewide infection rate inclusive of neighborhoods with ongoing outbreaks was 1.22 percent yesterday. There were 636 COVID-19 hospitalizations, 149 patients in intensive care, and 8 deaths reported yesterday.
Accordingly, the Governor announced that schools in the neighborhoods with hotspots in Brooklyn and Queens will close starting tomorrow. The State will continue to evaluate the situation and may extend this directive to close non-essential businesses, public spaces, and schools in other hotspots for the time being. Religious gatherings will be permitted to continue in accordance with State guidelines, if religious institutions agree to community cooperation and enforcement. Additionally, the State will begin overseeing enforcement in statewide hotspot clusters in collaboration with local government.
HHS Renews COVID-19 Public Health Emergency Declaration
On October 2nd, Secretary of Health and Human Services (HHS) Alex Azar announced that the agency will renew the COVID-19 national public health emergency (PHE) declaration effective October 23rd. This is the third time Secretary Azar has extended the emergency declaration, which must be renewed every 90 days. The new expiration date for the order will be January 21, 2021, one day into the next presidential term. The extension means that federal flexibilities (e.g., Medicare telehealth waivers) will continue and enhanced Medicaid funding for states will be available through the first quarter of 2021.
The official renewal declaration is available here.
HHS Releases Round 3 Provider Relief Fund Application and T&Cs
Today, HHS opened the application portal for the third round of General Distribution funding from the Provider Relief Fund (PRF). HHS also posted the Terms and Conditions for the funding. The Round 3 General Distribution, which will total $20 billion, offers funds to previously ineligible provider types and supplemental funding for providers who already received 2% of their net patient service revenue through Rounds 1 and/or 2 of the General Distribution but who have experienced greater lost revenue or COVID-19 expenses.
More information on the PRF is available here, and the Terms and Conditions for the Phase 3 PRF are available here.
Governor Cuomo Issues Executive Order 202.60
Today, Governor Cuomo signed Executive Order 202.67 (available here), which extends State Disaster Emergency and most provisions of several previous orders through November 3rd. The extended orders include Executive Orders 202 through 202.21, 202.27 through 202.30, 202.38 through 202.40, 202.48 through 202.50, and 202.55, which provide flexibility on major areas such as telehealth, provider qualifications, background checks, and provider locations. More details on specific extended provisions are available in SPG’s updated Waiver Timeline Tracker.
New York State DOH Launches COVID-19 Alert Application
On October 1st, the New York State Department of Health (DOH) announced the implementation of COVID Alert NY, an exposure app that will alert individuals if they have been exposed to COVID-19. The smartphone app is free, voluntary, and anonymous. Individuals who download the app will receive a notification if they have been in close contact with someone who has tested positive for COVID-19. Individuals 18 years or older may download the app if they live, work, or attend college in New York or New Jersey.
Additional information is available here.
DFS Extends Emergency Regulations Requiring Insurers to Waive Cost Sharing for Essential Workers
On September 29th, the New York State Department of Financial Services (DFS) extended emergency regulations which were initially published May 2nd that require DFS-regulated insurance plans to waive out-of-pocket costs (i.e. cost-sharing, deductibles, copayments, and coinsurance) for in-network mental health services for frontline essential workers during the COVID-19 emergency.
Frontline essential workers include:
- Health care workers;
- First responders;
- Transit workers;
- Food service workers;
- Retail workers at essential businesses; and
- Other frontline essential employees who directly interact with the public.
These regulations will now expire on November 27th unless further extended. The DFS press release is available here and the regulations are available here.