Maryland Delegation Urges Administration to Release Nursing Home COVID-19 Response Funds

(Washington, DC) – Today, U.S. Senators Chris Van Hollen and Ben Cardin along with Representatives Steny H. Hoyer, Dutch Ruppersberger, John P. Sarbanes, Andy Harris, M.D., Anthony G. Brown, Jamie B. Raskin, and David Trone urged Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) Administrator Seema Verma to immediately distribute funds included in the CARES Act to support efforts to prevent the spread of COVID-19 in nursing homes.
 
“As you know, the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act [P.L. 116–136] included $200 million for the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) to assist nursing homes with infection control and support states’ efforts to prevent the spread of COVID-19 in nursing homes. However, CMS has not yet released any of these funds. Given the significant challenges facing these facilities during this pandemic, we strongly urge you to disburse this funding as expeditiously as possible,” the Members write in their bipartisan letter.
 
They stress the widespread challenges Maryland nursing home facilities have faced, stating, “Out of Maryland’s 227 long-term care facilities, more than 150 of those facilities had COVID-19 cases as of April 20.  Earlier this month, a 200-bed facility in Northwest Baltimore announced that it had 170 positive COVID-19 cases among residents and staff, making it one of the largest long-term care facility outbreaks in the country. This follows a large outbreak at a Carroll County, Maryland nursing home where nearly 30 residents have died and more than 120 residents and staff tested positive.”
 
They underscore their concern, noting, “It is imperative that nursing homes and other long-term care facilities have the resources they need in order to prevent more of these devastating outbreaks. We believe that the disbursement of these CARES Act funds is an important first step in bolstering their ability to prepare and respond to COVID-19.”
 
The full text of the letter is available here.