Update on Congressional Sign-on Letters and Provider Relief Fund
Last week, we shared that Senators Kyrsten Sinema (D-AZ) and Susan Collins (R-ME) began circulating a bipartisansign-on letterurging the Biden administration to prioritize senior living operators for remaining Provider Relief Fund (PRF) allocations. We wanted to share that yesterday, Representatives Abigail Spanberger (D-VA) and Anthony Gonzalez (R-OH) began circulating a companion sign-on letter. We are in the process of collecting signatures on both letters and ask for your help in reaching out to your member of Congress and Senators asking them to sign on (the links will take you to pre-written messages and phone prompts to connect directly with your lawmakers' offices). The letters are expected to remain open for signatures into next week.
These letters, combined with the letter we sent to HHS Secretary Becerra immediately following his confirmation, will be critical in our effort to secure targeted relief from the PRF.
Earlier this week, we also confirmed from HHS that there is $32 billion remaining in unspent dollars in the PRF. This is roughly in line with a report issued in January by the Government Accountability Office. Other accounts have suggested between $20–30 billion remaining in unspent funds, which follows the $23 billion figure that Congress has been using, including in our sign-on letters. The discrepancy has been due to funds that were temporarily shifted from the PRF for other purposes, such as Operation Warp Speed. Regardless, we are encouraged by the amount of available funds and believe our request for a fair and equitable distribution of remaining funds is strong.
We will continue to keep you updated on developments regarding the PRF and our advocacy efforts with Congress to secure targeted funds for senior living providers.
