Audit of CARES Act Provider Relief Funds—General and Targeted Distributions to Hospitals

The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act and the Paycheck Protection Program and Health Care Enhancement Act appropriated $175 billion for the Provider Relief Fund (PRF) to support health care providers affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. In April 2020, the Health Resources and Services Administration began distributing the funds through general distributions to Medicare providers based on 2018 net patient revenue and targeted distributions for certain provider types (e.g., providers in areas particularly impacted by COVID-19, skilled nursing providers, and providers in rural areas). Providers such as hospitals may be eligible for PRF payments from the general and targeted distributions. We will select for audit a statistical sample of providers that received general and/or targeted distributions. Our objective is to determine whether providers that received PRF payments complied with certain Federal requirements, and the terms and conditions for reporting and expending PRF funds.

Announced or Revised	Agency	Title	Component	Report Number(s)	Expected Issue Date (FY)
August 2020	Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services	Audit of CARES Act Provider Relief Funds—General and Targeted Distributions to Hospitals	Office of Audit Services	W-00-20-35855	2021