Pallone Announces Safety Net Hospitals in New Jersey Will Receive Over $280 Million for Coronavirus Care

Washington, DC – Congressman Frank Pallone, Jr. (NJ-06) today announced that safety net hospitals in New Jersey will receive over $280 million in relief funding to combat the coronavirus pandemic.

The announcement came one day after the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) announced it would allocate a total of $10 billion to safety net hospitals nationwide who serve a disproportionate number of Medicaid patients or provide large amounts of uncompensated care. In the coming weeks, HHS will distribute an additional $15 billion to Medicaid providers who did not receive funding during the first and second general distributions from the Provider Relief Fund.

“This funding is a step in the right direction, but more needs to be done to address the ongoing needs of Medicaid providers who serve patients on the front lines of this pandemic. This funding is not nearly enough for providers in New Jersey who serve some of our most vulnerable communities,” Congressman Pallone said. “We have a duty to make sure frontline health providers have the resources they need to keep all Americans healthy. I will continue to fight to ensure the Trump Administration treats safety net providers fairly and that they receive the relief funds they need.”

Last week, Pallone and three other Committee leaders sent a letter expressing concern over prolonged delays in disbursing provider relief funds for Medicaid-dependent providers. In an effort to provide critical financial relief to health care providers struggling to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic, Congress acted swiftly to appropriate $175 billion in provider relief.

Pallone has helped to deliver the resources New Jersey health care providers need to combat the coronavirus pandemic. In May, Pallone announced that New Jersey hospitals received $1.7 billion in funding from the Provider Relief Fund established in the bipartisan Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. Providers in New Jersey’s Sixth Congressional District received over $177 million.