For Immediate Release
December 21, 2020
Contact: Brian Reardon

Statement by Sr. Mary Haddad, RSM, President and CEO, Catholic Health Association of the United States

The Catholic Health Association of the United States (CHA) welcomes the bipartisan and bicameral agreement on a 2021 omnibus appropriations and emergency coronavirus relief.

As we prepare to celebrate Christmas, our hospitals and long-term care facilities continue to meet the unprecedented challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic facing our communities and country. Today’s agreement is a sign of hope that our nation can come together to confront the pandemic and be united in support to those most in need this holiday season. We urge Congress to quickly pass and the President to sign this legislation.

The legislation provides a number of vital resources and important provisions for our nation’s public health and economic recovery through programs and aid targeted for those most in need. This includes:

• Providing critical resources for PPE, testing and vaccine development and distribution to help protect caregivers, patients and communities;
• Increasing financial support for our front-line health care providers and facilities by providing additional funds for the Provider Relief Fund, increasing Medicare provider payments, and extending the suspension of the two percent Medicare sequester;
• Protecting vulnerable beneficiaries in Medicaid by delaying harmful cuts in the Disproportionate Share Hospital program and restoring Medicaid coverage for Compact of Free Association communities living in the states;
• Ensuring patients will be protected by surprise medical bills while at the same time providing a fair and balanced approach for resolving disputes between insurers and providers;
• Extending the increased funding in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance program for six months while providing additional resources for The Emergency Food Assistance Program, Commodity Supplemental Food Program and Meals on Wheels´ Nutrition program for those in need;
• Providing additional rental assistance and extending the eviction moratorium through January 31, 2021 for struggling renters; and
• Extending and expanding the Paycheck Protection Program to assist nonprofits providing critical social services to those in need.

Today’s agreement is a critical first step in providing hope and relief for communities and families in need and we look forward to continuing to work to confront the challenges of COVID-19 in the coming weeks and months.

» Download a PDF of the statement

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The Catholic Health Association of the United States is the national leadership organization of the Catholic health ministry, representing the largest nonprofit provider of health care services in the nation.

• 1 in 7 patients in the U.S. is cared for in a Catholic hospital each day.
• Catholic health care, which includes more than 2,200 hospitals, nursing homes, long-term care facilities, systems, sponsors, and related organizations, serves the full continuum of health care across our nation.