U.S. Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., said a first-of-its-kind agreement with the Federal Emergency Management Agency will provide $250 million in reimbursement funds for New York hospitals to cover previously rejected costs incurred during the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Transportation, child care and housing expenses will now be available for reimbursement, according to the June 28 news release from Mr. Schumer.
FEMA will allow the state and affected hospitals to enter into an agreement stating that the actions hospitals took to protect physicians, nurses, support staff, and their families, were in service of the state’s legal responsibility to protect all New Yorkers, making those hospital expenditures eligible for FEMA’s funding.
New York accounted for 20 percent of the country's confirmed cases and more than 33 percent of the confirmed deaths in the early days of the pandemic, according to Mr. Schumer. More than 270,000 healthcare workers needed child care support to continue working. Many needed alternative housing to protect their families from exposure.
Without the agreement with FEMA, Mr. Schumer said hospitals would have shouldered those expenses alone while fighting to stay afloat and continuing the battle against COVID-19.