iNew guidance provided by the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) on June 13 delays the quarterly reporting requirement for Provider Relief Fund recipients. The initial report no longer is due in early July.
Background on Reporting Requirement
The Terms and Conditions imposed upon a recipient of more than $150,000 from the various Acts that constitute the Provider Relief Fund, require the recipient to submit a report “[n]ot later than 10 days after the end of each calendar quarter.” The report must detail the use of those funds, among other categories of information. As of May 6, according to the FAQ page on HHS’s Coronavirus Provider Relief Fund webpage, HHS indicated that the reporting requirement “begins for the calendar quarter ending June 30,” which would have presumably required all affected entities to file their initial reports on or before July 10.
New Guidance
As of June 13, though, the FAQ page is amended and the May 6 guidance on the reporting due date has been deleted. Instead, the guidance now provides (emphasis added):
Recipients of Provider Relief Fund payments do not need to submit a separate quarterly report to HHS or the Pandemic Response Accountability Committee. HHS will develop a report containing all information necessary for recipients of Provider Relief Fund payments to comply with this provision.
While it is unclear if this guidance dispenses with the quarterly reporting requirements altogether, just delays the due date, or combines the quarterly reporting requirement with the more general reporting requirement in the Terms and Conditions, the current takeaway is that entities do not need to file a report by July 10.
Beyond the quarterly reporting requirement for recipients of over $150,000, the Terms and Conditions also indicate that there will be reporting requirements for all recipients. The Terms and Conditions mandate that each recipient “shall submit reports as the Secretary determines are needed to ensure compliance with conditions that are imposed on this Payment, and such reports shall be in such form, with such content, as specified by the Secretary in future program instructions directed to all Recipients.” The amended FAQ relating to the reporting requirements now indicates that HHS intends to issue guidance on this separate reporting requirement in the coming weeks:
However, the Terms and Conditions for all Provider Relief Fund payments also require recipients to submit any reports requested by the Secretary that are necessary to allow HHS to ensure compliance with payment Terms and Conditions. HHS will be requiring recipients to submit future reports relating to the recipient’s use of its PRF money. HHS will notify recipients of the content and due date(s) of such reports in the coming weeks.
Reports Will be Required Eventually
In short, for the time being, recipients of Provider Relief Fund payments are in sit and wait mode regarding the reporting requirements. Nevertheless, the date will come when reporting is required, and it is clear from the Terms and Conditions that HHS will be seeking substantially detailed reporting as to how the funds have been used. As we await further guidance from HHS, all providers should keep detailed records of how Provider Relief Fund payments have been spent and how they are abiding by the other applicable Terms and Conditions that accompanied those payments. See our discussion of these terms here.
