Federal Updates
Congress Reaches Deal to Increase Funding for Small Businesses and Health Care Providers by Nearly $500 billion
Today (April 21st), the Senate passed a bill by voice vote that will amend the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act to provide further economic relief for businesses and health care providers affected by COVID-19. Titled the Paycheck Protection Program and Health Care Enhancement Act, the bill would:
- Provide an additional $75 billion for reimbursement to hospitals and healthcare providers, without modifying the language used to allocate $100 billion in the original CARES Act (of which $30 billion has been distributed so far);
- Increase the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) appropriated funding by $321 billion (to $670 billion);
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- Set aside $60 billion in PPP loans to be given through “community financial institutions” and other local lenders, including credit unions, with assets below $50 billion.
- Increase the Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) grants’ appropriation level by $10 billion (to $20 billion);
- Increase the Disaster Loans Program Account appropriated funding by $50 billion;
- Provide an additional $25 billion for necessary expenses related to COVID-19 testing (including research, development, manufacturing, and administration), including, among other items:
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- $11 billion for state and local governments, to be distributed partly based on the number of COVID-19 cases. Recipients would be required to submit a plan detailing how they will use the resources for testing;
- $22 million for the Food and Drug Administration (FDA);
- $825 million for Community Health Centers and rural health clinics; and
- Up to $1 billion for the cost of testing for the uninsured.
The House is expected to pass the legislation Thursday. The released text of the legislation is available here.
CMS Announces New Clinical Trials Improvement Activity
On April 20th, CMS announced that clinicians earning value-based reimbursement through the Merit-based Incentive Payment System (MIPS) will be able to earn credit for reporting information on COVID-19 clinical trials by attesting to a new COVID-19 Clinical Trials improvement activity. In order to receive credit, clinicians must participate in a COVID-19 clinical trial utilizing a drug or biological product to treat a COVID-19 infection and report their findings through a clinical data repository or clinical data registry for the duration of their study. Eligible clinicians attesting to the new MIPS improvement activity will automatically receive half of the total credits needed to earn a maximum score in the performance category, which counts as 15% of final MIPS scores. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, CMS has extended the data submission deadline for MIPS through April 30th.
A database of clinical trials currently being conducted on COVID-19 is available here.
State Updates
Governor Cuomo Announces Regional Approach to Reopening, Including Resumption of Elective Outpatient Treatment
Today (April 21st), Governor Cuomo held a press conference during which he announced a regional approach to “reopening” the State, with decisions based on the level of COVID-19 impact in a given region. In accordance with this approach, the State will begin allowing hospitals to resume elective outpatient treatment if they are located in regions without significant near-term risk of a COVID-19 surge. The Governor noted that hospitals in certain counties would continue to be excluded from providing elective surgeries for now, including New York City and Westchester, Rockland, Erie, Albany, and Dutchess Counties, among others. The Governor also said that if needed, the State was prepared to “surge and flex” to support and address a local cluster or outbreak anywhere in the State, including sending ventilators and equipment from downstate to upstate.
Yesterday (April 20th), the Governor released Executive Order 202.22 (available here), which contains provisions related to delaying deadlines and waiving associated penalties for various types of taxes, including property, county, and school taxes.
New York State COVID-19 Maternity Task Force
On April 20th, Secretary to the Governor Melissa DeRosa and the New York State Council on Women & Girls launched a COVID-19 Maternity Task Force that will develop a plan for New York State to authorize and certify additional birth centers to provide mothers with a safe alternative to hospitals during the COVID-19 pandemic. The Task Force will also work with Regional Perinatal Centers to review the data and make recommendations on the impact of COVID-19 on pregnancy. The Task Force will be comprised of various stakeholders, including obstetrical providers, pediatric care providers, and family planning agencies, and will work closely with the Department of Health (DOH).
The Task Force will provide recommendations to Governor Cuomo by the end of the week. The press release is available here.
New York State Nurses Association Files Three Lawsuits
Yesterday, the New York State Nursing Association (NYSNA) announced in a press release (available here) that it has filed three lawsuits against two hospitals (Montefiore Medical Center and Westchester Medical Center) and the New York State DOH for failing to protect the health and safety of nurses treating COVID-19 patients. The lawsuits allege that the three entities failed to provide: 1) adequate personal protective equipment (PPE) for nurses, 2) proper training for nurses redeployed from hospital units, and 3) safe working conditions for high-risk employees.
The court documents are available here.