HHS GENERAL ALLOCATION FUND PORTAL

Late this past week the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced that it will begin distributing the second tranche of funds from the $100 billion in funds to hospitals and other healthcare providers impacted by the coronavirus response. The funding will be used to support healthcare-related expenses or lost revenue attributable to COVID-19. HHS announced that $50 billion of the Provider Relief Fund is allocated for general distribution to facilities and providers which billed Medicare in 2019, and are impacted by COVID-19, based on providers' 2018 net patient revenue. Of this $50 billion, the initial $30 billion was distributed between April 10 and April 17, and payments to providers from that $30 billion were calculated based on providers’ portion of Medicare fee-for-service revenue. 
 
Starting o n April 24, a portion of providers will automatically be sent an advance payment based off the revenue data they submit in CMS cost reports. Providers without adequate cost report data on file will need to submit their revenue information to the  General Distribution Portal  for additional general distribution funds. Initially some states and specialties thought that physicians must also submit cost reports, but the AMA verified with HHS that this is not the case. Physicians, however, do need to submit their revenue information so that it can be verified via the  General Distribution Portal . The portal is now open. The customer service line confirmed anyone who has a Billing TIN (including a pediatric or obstetric practice) who lost revenue in March and/or can estimate lost revenue in April due to the COVID-19 crisis, should be filling out this portal.  
 
The AMA has put together guidance to help physicians pull together the information they need to submit to the portal. Below is a link from HHS with further explanations. 
 

 
Additional Funding Related to Treatment of the Uninsured

  • A portion of the $100 billion Provider Relief Fund will be used to reimburse healthcare providers, at Medicare rates, for COVID-related treatment of the uninsured. Physicians are eligible for this funding. Every health care provider who has provided treatment for uninsured COVID-19 patients on or after February 4, 2020, can request claims reimbursement through the program and will be reimbursed at Medicare rates, subject to available funding. Steps will involve: enrolling as a provider participant, checking patient eligibility and benefits, submitting patient information, submitting claims, and receiving payment via direct deposit.
  • Providers can register for the program on April 27, 2020, and begin submitting claims in early May 2020.
  • For more information, visit coviduninsuredclaim.hrsa.gov.
WGN-TV INTERVIEWS CMS COVID TASKFORCE MEMBER

Dr. Vishnu Chundi, an infectious diseases specialist at the Chicago Medical Society and co-chair of the COVID-19 Task Force was interviewed on WGN-TV about plasma donation efforts.

COVID-19 STAKEHOLDER ENGAGEMENT CALLS

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services hosts varied recurring stakeholder engagement sessions to share information related to the agency’s response to COVID-19.
Click to see the schedule of calls , which are open to members of the healthcare community and are intended to provide updates, share best practices among peers, and offer attendees an opportunity to ask questions.

SEXUAL HARASSMENT WEBINAR

This 1-hour training will satisfy your CME requirements for licensure and provide you with an overview of sexual harassment in the workplace – what it is, what it isn’t, how to promote a work culture of non-harassment, a review of the laws governing appropriate and professional conduct in the workplace, and how to investigate and deal with hostile work environment complaints.  April 30, 2020 - 7:00 PM

SPECIAL SESSION: COVID-19 IN ADULT POPULATIONS

Chicago Medical Society has partnered with ECHO-Chicago to support community providers in addressing COVID-19. ECHO-Chicago has set-up a series of weekly sessions focused on the latest best practices for pediatric and adult populations. Each hour-long session includes a brief didactic led by infectious disease specialists at the University of Chicago Medicine and other experts. The 15-20 minute didactic is then followed by an extensive Q&A to help providers to deal with the real world issues of primary care providers.

Join this special CME training session for a didactic and an extensive Q&A led by ECHO-Chicago Director & Infectious Disease Specialist, Dr. Daniel Johnson, and other experts.

Registration is REQUIRED - April 29, 2020 5:30 PM

Stay Connected. Stay Informed. Connect with Us.

Given the current COVID-19 pandemic, social media is the BEST way to stay up to date with the Chicago Medical Society’s news and events in real time.


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