FAQs Issued About Upcoming Changes to COVID-19 Relief
The IRS and the U.S. Departments of Labor and Health and Human Services have jointly issued frequently asked questions (FAQs) regarding how COVID-19-related relief measures will change when the officially declared Public Health Emergency (PHE) ends.
Based on current COVID-19 trends, the Department of Health and Human Services is planning for the federal PHE for COVID-19 to end on May 11, 2023.
The new FAQs, Part 58 and Part 59 of the Affordable Care Act Implementation FAQs, clarify how the COVID-19 coverage and payment requirements under the Families First Coronavirus Response Act (FFCRA) and the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act (CARES Act) will change when the PHE ends. Among other things, the FAQs address rapid coverage of preventive services and vaccines for coronavirus and the extension of certain timeframes for employee benefit plans, participants and beneficiaries affected by the COVID-19 outbreak.
Under the FFCRA and the CARES Act, plans and issuers are not required to provide coverage for items and services related to diagnostic testing for COVID-19 that are furnished after the end of the PHE. If they provide such coverage, they may impose cost-sharing requirements, prior authorization or other medical management requirements for the items and services.
For previously issued FAQs, see the Center for Medicare and Medicaid website.