AHA urges FEMA Review Council to act on outstanding Public Assistance Program applications, reimbursement

The AHA May 15 urged the Federal Emergency Management Agency Review Council to immediately act on expediting the processing of applications, reimbursement of funds and other actions regarding its Public Assistance Program. The AHA shared concerns about $6.9 billion in funding for hospital COVID-19 projects that had yet to be distributed, nearly $1 billion in projects that were reviewed but not yet approved for funding, and more than 1,000 projects that were submitted but not yet reviewed. 

“Many of our members are frustrated with the extremely slow pace of project processing and reimbursement, especially with respect to the COVID-19 public health emergency,” the AHA wrote. “Even though this emergency officially ended in 2023... many claims have yet to be paid by FEMA. Hospitals and health systems have also expressed concerns about the extensive and often redundant administrative burdens imposed by FEMA’s complex and multi-level review process.” 

The AHA urged the council to work with stakeholders to help reduce administrative burden, among additional actions.