Nearly $14M in coronavirus relief sent for seven rural Montana health providers

Note: This was provided by the Office of Sen. Jon Tester 

As part of his efforts to ensure that Montana’s rural hospitals and clinics have the resources they need to fight the coronavirus pandemic, U.S. Senator Jon Tester D-Mont., Monday announced an additional $13,866,039 in coronavirus relief funding for seven Montana rural health care providers as part of the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security — CARES — Act.

“As cases continue to climb across Montana, our rural hospitals, clinics and community health centers need as many tools as they can get to keep up with operating costs and new cases,” Tester said. “Many of our rural providers were operating on razor-thin margins to begin with, so it’s absolutely critical that we’re providing them with funding like this to ensure they can continue supporting their communities — and their frontline health care workers — throughout this crisis and beyond.”

The funding comes following a Department of Health and Human Services decision to allocate an additional $1 billion to rural providers through the Provider Relief Fund, a program that Tester fought to secure as part of the CARES Act and has already brought nearly $200 million to 121 rural providers across Montana. This announcement will expand funding eligibility to seven additional health care providers in rural areas across the state.

  Tester has fought tooth and nail to ensure rural health care providers are not left behind during the pandemic. Earlier this month, he introduced legislation to bolster Montana’s Medicaid program during the crisis, and he recently introduced a resolution condemning the Trump administration’s reckless effort to repeal the Affordable Care Act, which rural hospitals and clinics rely on to survive.

Tester also sent a letter to HHS Secretary Alex Azar calling for quick relief for rural health care providers struggling to keep their doors open during the ongoing public health emergency, and he has fought to expand and preserve telehealth access to help folks in rural Montana continue accessing health care during the outbreak.