Assisted living residences and personal care homes will have to wait a little longer for American Rescue Plan Act payments to be distributed under Pennsylvania’s Act 54 of 2022. The payments have been delayed, according to the state Department of Human Services.
Act 54, signed into law by then-Gov. Tom Wolf (D), allocates $26.7 million of the federal funding for the assisted living and personal care payments. The law requires that the one-time ARPA funds must be used for COVID-19-related costs not otherwise reimbursed by federal, state or other sources of funding.
Payments are still weeks away, Eric Heisler, director of communications for the Pennsylvania Health Care Association, told the McKnight’s Business Daily.
“The funds were approved in July, and the process to distribute the funds was delayed through the fall,” he said. Now, it looks like it might be March before providers see those funds, DHS told providers.
“PHCA is working with our members to facilitate any urgent needs for the funds or concerns of not receiving funds yet with the department,” Heisler said.
Heisler said that the delays “create concerns for providers who have been waiting for these funds to apply to infection control needs or to put toward employee bonuses for workforce recruitment and retention as workforce challenges continue, to name a few examples.”
Garry Pezzano, president and CEO of LeadingAge PA, told the McKnight’s Business Daily that “[a]ny delay in payments to providers is a concern as the sector continues to battle workforce shortages and financial pressures.”
The association, however, is “encouraged by DHS’ communication through the delay and are hopeful the impact will be minimal,” he added.
According to Pennsylvania’s Rehabilitation and Community Providers Association, DHS’ Office of Long-Term Living had processed just 50% of the Act 54 payments for assisted living residences and personal care homes as of Feb. 6. Approximately 25% of the total facilities for which form submissions have been received have been fully processed and paid by the treasury, RCPA noted.
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