All providers who received more than $10,000 in PRF funds between 7/1/2020 and 12/31/2020 are required to report their use of funds by 3/31/2022.
The Provider Relief Fund (PRF) Reporting Period 2 deadline is now only two weeks away, with final submission due no later than March 31, 2022. Unlike Period 1, we do not anticipate a grace period. This reporting period will cover all PRF funds received July 1, 2020 through December 31, 2020, which can be expended on eligible lost revenues (except Nursing Home Infection Control (NHIC)) and allowable COVID-related expenses between January 1, 2020 and December 31, 2021. This is the first reporting period for most non-Medicare providers, including Assisted Living and ICF/IID, while most other provider types, including Nursing Homes, are returning reporters.
Providers must enter their information into the PRF Reporting Portal. For more detail on what each section of the reporting portal requires, providers can visit the HRSA Reporting and Auditing webpage, which has many helpful links, including a Reporting Resource Guide. The reporting requirements and user guide include definitions of many items required to be reported, while the worksheets will assist you in gathering all of the necessary information prior to beginning the submission process. In some cases, the definitions may differ from what providers would normally expect. For example, when reporting expenses for wages and benefits attributable to Coronavirus, providers may expect to report wages and benefits for positions like RNs and STNAs in the “Healthcare Related expenses” category. However, all expenses related to personnel and fringe benefits are to be reported in the “General and Administrative expenses” category.
New Reporters
- Before first-time reporters can begin reporting, they must first register on the website.
- You must complete the registration in one session or you will be required to start the registration process again.
Returning Reporters
- Returning reporters do not need to register and may log into the Portal with their existing username, TIN, and password.
- Much of the information entered on the Period 1 report will auto-populate in the Period 2 portal.
- Providers can edit and update any auto-populated fields.
- The Period of Availability for Period 2 overlaps Period 1 and providers will need to show how payments were applied to expenses and lost revenues from Q1 2020 through Q4 2021.
- The expenses and lost revenues for Q3 2021 and Q4 2021 must not be duplicative of those included in the Period 1 Report for Q1 2020 through Q2 2021.
- Methodology for calculating lost revenues can be changed but the new methodology must be used to calculate lost revenues for the entire Period 2 Period of Availability.
- Previously reported financial information as part of the lost revenues calculation can be changed but you must include a written justification for the change.
Nursing Home Infection Control (NHIC) Distribution
- NHIC payments have a more limited use of funds and must be reported separately from all General/Targeted Distribution payments.
- Lost revenues may not be used as justification for NHIC payments.
- NHIC payments are a component of a Targeted Distribution and thus the original recipient of the NHIC payment is always the Reporting Entity.
- The Portal includes a separate expense worksheet for NHIC payments.
- Expenses reported in Period 1 cannot be reported as NHIC, even if they were infection control expenses.
- Expenses not reimbursed by NHIC payments should not be reported on the NHIC expense worksheet.
It is important to note that if you are not able to substantiate the use of all of the funds received through December 31, 2021, you will need to return any unused funds by no later than April 30, 2022. The portal will assist you in calculating the amount of funds that you will need to return. It is important that you review this amount prior to submission and determine whether or not you agree with the calculation. Once you have begun the reporting process, you can save your information and return later, so taking the time to ensure that the information entered is complete and accurate is something that all providers should do. Should the portal show you owe funds back to HRSA, we highly recommend contacting an HW Healthcare Advisor prior to final submission to discuss whether any eligible lost revenues or expenses might have been missed in your initial information gathering.
Now is the time to act if you haven’t begun the PRF reporting process…
Do not wait until the few days before March 31 to begin compiling your information! If you have not already done so, please register (if a first-time reporter) and begin gathering your information as soon as possible and reach out to your HW Healthcare advisor with any questions that you might have. More information can also be found in previous articles on our website including a description of the methods of calculating lost revenue, allowable COVID-related expenses, what to consider for future reporting periods, and other important tips.
