Healthcare providers are raising new concerns about unspent funds earmarked by the Department of Health and Human Services for pandemic-related assistance.
Over $50 billion dollars in relief funds meant for providers remains unspent, with many providers claiming that they have only received a fraction of what they requested to cover losses incurred during the pandemic.
The Department of Health and Human Services has distributed roughly 70 percent of the $175 billion appropriated by Congress to relieve health care providers of economic strain imposed by the coronavirus pandemic. HHS maintains that it is distributing funds in a way that is “fast, fair, transparent and simple,” a spokesperson told the Washington Free Beacon.
Still frustration remains as providers say the money isn’t being doled out fast enough in relation to added workloads and the strain caused by onerous safety requirements.
Though the fund is just a fraction of the estimated $4 trillion Congress has appropriated since March, the economic downturn has struck health care providers particularly hard, with unemployment remaining elevated above pre-crisis levels.
Such slow response has also attracted criticism about whether taxpayers needed to foot that particular bill.