Deadline to Apply: Now!
The department of Health and Human Services is now providing funds to help dentists recover financially. This Provider Relief Fund has recently been expanded to all dental practices, rather than just Medicaid offices. The program is surprisingly uncomplicated (especially coming from the government). This new fund is not a loan or grant—it is relief money—2% of patient revenue in most general dental practices, equivalent to 8% of net profit, or a 13th month of pay. It doesn't matter whether or not you received a PPP loan.
The deadline for application is very soon: July 24th. You can apply here and receive 2% of last year’s patient revenue.
ADA President, Chad P. Gehani, DDS recently released this statement:
Last month, you’ll recall an announcement from the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) that eligible Medicaid and Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) providers could apply to the Medicaid Targeted Distribution portion of the CARES Act Provider Relief Fund. Today, through efforts of ADA advocacy dating back to April, I am excited to share that HHS announced that this portal and an application process is now open to all dentists who may not have previously been eligible to receive funding through the Provider Relief Fund to help with the closings we all faced at the start of the Coronavirus pandemic.
The ADA has been working very closely with HHS and the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), who administers the fund, to implement this for dentists. As a result of this advocacy, eligible dentists will receive a reimbursement of two percent of their annual reported patient revenue and will have until July 24, 2020 to apply for funding through the Enhanced Provider Relief Fund Payment Portal. To be clear, this money is neither a loan nor a grant, but a payment. It’s unrelated to the Small Business Administration (SBA) loans such as the Economic Injury Disaster Loan (EIDL) or the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans and you are not precluded from applying for this HHS payment if you previously received a SBA loan.
Dentists must provide HHS with requested information in the application and must also agree to the program Terms and Conditions. HHS has also provided a number of FAQs on the Provider Relief Fund. For help with the application process, HHS has also set up a Provider Support Line (866) 569-3522 to assist with questions.
The ADA is proud to support dentists as they return to serving their communities. With your voices, our advocacy efforts are driving our profession forward. Be sure to visit ADA.org/COVID19Advocacy for regular updates.