The president of the Wyoming Hospital Association told lawmakers Oct. 6 that hospitals in the state have been waiting "way too long" for federal funding from the CARES Act, according to the Wyoming Tribune Eagle.
Wyoming received $1.25 billion from the CARES Act to cover expenses related to the COVID-19 pandemic. State officials set up a program for hospitals and other entities to apply for loans from the federal funds. The state has less than three months to use the roughly $38 million it has left in unallocated funds for healthcare facilities.
Eric Boley, president of the Wyoming Hospital Association, testified before state lawmakers that the application process for those funds is "cumbersome" and may result in some funds being returned to the federal government.
"I don't know if we're going to see any relief from the deadline, but the Dec. 31 deadline created a situation where I think a lot of money is going to be returned to the feds that really could have been put to use here in our state," Mr. Boley told lawmakers, according to the Wyoming Tribune Eagle. "Our healthcare facilities are aging, and our ability to treat these patients could have been enhanced and built."
Mr. Boley said many of the hospitals in the state have seen their revenue drop by more than 50 percent, and hospital revenues haven't fully recovered to pre-COVID-19 numbers.
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