Nursing Home Providers Push for $100B in Upcoming Stimulus Bill

July 22, 2020

Nursing home operators are applying more heat on Congress to deliver coronavirus funding for long-term care facilities in any impending stimulus bill.

The American Health Care Association and National Center for Assisted Living on Tuesday requested an additional $100 billion for the CARES Act Provider Relief Fund, adding that a sizable portion of the fund should be dedicated to helping nursing homes and assisted living communities pay for virus-related costs.

Such costs include continuous testing that the administration has recommended, personal protective equipment and staffing. The fund is accessible to all healthcare providers affected by COVID-19, not just long-term care facilities.

AHCA also is requesting a $5 billion fund to which labs and nursing homes or assisted living communities can apply to cover the costs of any testing ordered by a governmental entity. The association also requested that Congress ensure that nursing homes and assisted living facilities be the first and highest priority for eventual vaccine distribution.

Read more in McKnight’s Long-Term Care News.