1,400 Hospitals Ask Congress for Medicare Loan Forgiveness
Nearly 1,400 hospitals and health systems in 50 states are asking Congress for additional economic relief from the pandemic as many hospitals across the country continue to furlough employees, curtail services and struggle to meet their communities' needs.
Click here for the grassroots hospital and health system letter to Congress.
Hospitals want Congress to include Medicare loan forgiveness -- in the form of H.R. 7292 -- in the next economic relief package. 67 Democrats and Republicans have signed on to the bill. The legislation keeps the Medicare Trust Fund intact and converts the loans into grants with an appropriation of approximately $101 billion. The legislation allows the funds to be used only for Covid expenses and losses and hospitals must return to the Treasury any funds not used for this purpose by June 2021. The loans were provided to hospitals, nursing homes, physicians and other Medicare providers.
The financial outlook for hospitals is dire.
- A new Kaufman-Hall report outlines the precipitous drop in hospitals' margins. Click here.
- A new report from Fitch Ratings says not-for-profit hospitals are not likely to be financially stable until a vaccine is developed. Click here.
- Other recent reports underscore how current relief funding falls far short of what hospitals need. Click here for a one page summary.