Practice Management Alert

Question: How do I know which information the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) needs to process my application for additional Provider Relief Funds? Who will have access to this sensitive information? Can I follow up with HHS directly with any questions?

Pennsylvania Subscriber

Answer: Some of the revenue data that you need to share on your application for Provider Relief Funds includes the federal tax classification for the organization in question. You need to determine whether the applicant files as a sole proprietor, partnership, C Corporation, S Corporation, trust, or tax-exempt organization, which is determined by “the applicant’s entity and any tax elections the applicant has made,” HHS says.

You can find this information by looking at your most recent taxes; the following forms determine how you filed, HHS says:

• Form 1040: The applicant is a sole proprietor or provides services as the sole member of an LLC.
• Form 1065: The applicant is a partnership.
• Form 1120: The applicant is a C corporation.
• Form 1120-S: The applicant is an S corporation.
• Form 990: The applicant is a tax-exempt organization.
• Form 1041: The applicant is a trust.

HHS will have access to the revenue data you submit in order to allocate funds appropriately, but the agency says that it will not share any information with other entities “in or outside of government, except as prescribed by law.” In theory, HHS is allocating funds to U.S. health care providers “with the intention of optimizing the beneficial impact of the funds,” the agency says.

HHS is not accepting any communication inquiries from providers, and there is no appeals or other remedy process for Provider Relief Funds.

Find more information here: www.hhs.gov/sites/default/files/20200425-general-distribution-portal-faqs.pdf.