Here's exactly what the $2 trillion coronavirus stimulus bill means for hospitals, doctors, and health insurers

Kimberly Leonard

Mar 26, 2020, 18:23 IST

Here's exactly what the $2 trillion coronavirus stimulus bill means for hospitals, doctors, and health insurers

Congress is coming to the aid of healthcare workers at a time when they're overwhelmed by surging demand and meager medical supplies.
The Senate passed a $2 trillion stimulus bill late Wednesday night. The package now needs to be voted on by the House.
More than $100 billion will go toward hospitals, and there are also changes to regulations for over-the-counter drugs and rules about what insurers must cover.
The House is taking up the stimulus package by voice vote, which would tee it up for President Donald Trump's signature this weekend.
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The Senate sent a $2 trillion stimulus package to the House Wednesday night aimed at buoying an economy battered by lockdowns and layoffs amid the coronavirus pandemic.

The 880-page legislation, called the "CARES Act," also has numerous provisions to rescue the healthcare system, which has become flooded by the demands of treating people with COVID-19.

Senators reached a bipartisan agreement after five days of negotiations. Text of the bill was released publicly just ahead of the late-night vote, but it's not yet clear to what extent the bill will face opposition in the Democrat-controlled House, which is taking it up on Friday by what is known as "voice vote."

The procedural move means most lawmakers can stay in their districts at a time when public health officials are urging as many people as possible to stay home. But it's also a risky maneuver given that the bill would fail to quickly make it to President Donald Trump's desk if a single member objects or requests a roll call vote.

Business Insider combed through the aid package making its way through Congress to take a look at how it would impact the healthcare industry. Most - but not all - provisions are directly tied to the coronavirus.

The bill provides funding for hospitals and healthcare workers

The hospital industry will receive more than $100 billion in funding from the federal government to help create what Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, a New York Democrat, has been referring to as a "Marshall Plan," referring to the reconstruction aid the U.S. sent to Europe after World War II.

The American Hospital Association, the American Medical Association, and the American Nurses Association estimated that hospitals are losing $1 million a day from the pandemic, not just from screening and treating people who have the virus but also from purchasing additional supplies and forgoing revenue by delaying routine medical procedures.

Schumer touted the hospital funding as a big with for Democrats, saying it was $55 billion higher than what Republicans initially put forward when they unveiled a bill last weekend.

Hospitals who treat Medicare patients with COVID-19 will also get a 20% boost in reimbursement, and the bill delays cuts to payments to hospitals that reimburse them for uncompensated care.

Refilling the National Strategic Stockpile with medical gear

The National Strategic Stockpile, which is made up of warehouses that stock drugs and medical equipment in the case of a pandemic or other national emergency, will get a funding boost of $16 billion. The provision comes in response to healthcare workers being short on masks, ventilators, and swabs that help test for the virus. Another package Congress passed to respond to the virus already added $17 billion to the stockpile.

Under the bill, drugmakers will need to report how much of their medicines they have in stock, must alert officials whenever they can't get an ingredient they need, and must craft a backup plan in case they should they run out of supplies. Medicines facing a shortage would get priority for review by the Food and Drug Administration.

As for medical device manufacturers, those who make products considered key during a public health emergency would need to alert federal agencies if they're running short.

The National Academy of Medicine would be required to put out a report about how much the U.S. depends on drugs and devices made outside the country. It will look at shortages and make recommendations to improve the supply chain.

Another $11 billion in funding will go toward the development of vaccines, treatments, and medical preparedness against the coronavirus, according to a summary from the Appropriations Committee.

Here are other key provisions of the bill for the healthcare industry:

Increases childcare for medical workers: Employees in the healthcare sector and other workers helping with the coronavirus response will be able to tap into a $3.5 billion block grant that helps pay for childcare.
Adds requirements for health insurers: Insurers will have to cover all tests for the coronavirus without charging patients out of pocket. Once a vaccine is developed, approved, and gets a top rating by outside medical panels, insurers also will have to pay for it without charging patients a co-pay.
Requires posting prices of coronavirus tests: Companies that provide testing for coronavirus must publish the list price of the test online during a public health emergency. Companies that don't comply can be fined $300 a day.
Lifts telehealth restrictions: The bill does away with restrictions on medical providers who use telehealth to treat patients, including a rule that requires a provider to have treated the patient within the past three years and another that blocks specialists from evaluating patients on at-home dialysis face to face.
Adds funding for community health centers: The bill will allocate $1.32 billion more funding to community health centers, which provide preventive and primary care to about 30 million patients, mainly those who are uninsured, undocumented, or live in a rural areas.
Boosts medical research: The National Institutes of Health, which awards grants to medical researchers, is getting a budget boost of $945.5 million that will go toward developing a test, vaccine, and treatment for the coronavirus. Some of that funding will go toward researchers who focus on how the virus affects people with heart and lung problems. An earlier bill Trump signed into law already increased NIH funding, bringing the extra funds NIH is getting to fight the coronavirus to $1.78 billion.
Changes regulation of over-the-counter drugs: Companies that create new over-the-counter drugs would get a new 18-month market exclusivity on their medicines. The FDA also will be allowed to approve changes to over-the-counter drugs administratively, instead of through the current, lengthier practice of doing so through putting out a notice and gathering public comment.
Eases requirements on privacy of medical records: Doctors will more easily be able to access information about whether patients have a history of addiction through a change in regulations tucked into the coronavirus aid package. Patients can consent to the information being shared to helps doctors keep addiction history in mind when they prescribe medications. The bill also requires the Department of Health and Human Services to put out guidance about what medical information can be shared during the outbreak.