Perspective: Making the Pitch for More COVID-19 Relief

A divided Congress. A lapsed deadline to pass important legislation. And uncertainty about how the situation will end.

As Baseball Hall of Famer Yogi Berra famously said, “It’s déjà vu all over again.”

We’ve seen this play out on Capitol Hill too often. But now it’s occurring in the middle of a pandemic. And while we appreciate the relief Congress has provided, it’s been 105 days since the last COVID-19 relief package was signed into law.

Our federal lawmakers need to step up to the plate now to ensure that our hospitals and health systems — and the women and men on the front line of the crisis — have the necessary resources to continue caring for our patients and communities.

Over the past several weeks, we’ve laid the groundwork with Congress and the Administration on why additional support is critical. These include: 

• A report we released from Kaufman Hall that showed without further federal support, hospitals’ margins could sink to -7% in the second half of 2020, with half of all hospitals operating in the red. This built on previous AHA studies that found hospitals and health systems could lose upwards of $323 billion by the end of the year because of COVID-19.
• A national TV and digital ad urging Congress to provide additional relief so we can continue to serve as the first line of defense against the virus.
• And the Coalition to Protect America's Health Care — of which the AHA is a founding member — is in the middle of a comprehensive multimedia strategy, which also includes a national TV ad, asking its 2 million supporters to weigh in on our behalf. The Coalition also released national polling that showed Americans overwhelmingly view hospitals very favorably and support Congress providing additional financial relief.

Among other issues, we continue to advocate for:

• Full forgiveness for Medicare accelerated payments;
• At least an additional $100 billion for the Provider Relief Fund;
• More support for front-line caregivers;
• Liability protections for front-line medical providers and facilities; and
• Maintaining health benefits for individuals and families … and increasing coverage options for the uninsured.

You can see a full list of our priorities and resources on our Action Center webpage.

Yogi Berra also famously said, “It ain’t over ‘til it’s over.”

While negotiations continue, rest assured, we'll be working both sides of the aisle to make sure our priorities are in the mix in whatever package comes together … which we hope will be as soon as possible.

Your support and engagement are crucial. We’ve made it easy for you to contact your senators to reinforce our messages. You also can ask your family and friends to pitch in too.

Thanks for all of your efforts to battle COVID-19 and protect the health of our nation. We’ll keep you updated from Washington, D.C., as we continue to make the case for additional COVID-19 relief for our health care heroes.