Hospitals are seeking guidance from HHS on how to utilize past distributed funds with the next package getting ready to be dispersed. The response may lead to hospitals needing to return portions of the coronavirus relief package funding. The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act was passed to protect rural hospitals forced to stop elective procedures during the pandemic. Now, five months into the pandemic, economic disruptions are continuing and hospitals are wondering how long CARES funding will replace the money they have lost. Ten billion dollars was distributed to rural hospitals, but people worry about how long the funding will last, especially hospitals that never treated COVID-19 patients.
