SCHUMER, GILLIBRAND ANNOUNCE OVER $2.2 MILLION IN FEDERAL DISASTER RELIEF FOR AUBURN COMMUNITY HOSPITAL FOR COVID RESPONSE
Funding Comes On The Heels Of Schumer Successfully Delivering $3.4M In Long Over Due Rural Hospital ARPA Relief Funds To Auburn To Make Up For Budget Shortfalls
Senators Say New FEMA Funding – At A 100% Federal Cost Share – Will Reimburse Hospital For Costs Related to Pandemic Response In Cayuga County Since March 2020
Schumer, Gillibrand: Fed Funding Will Keep Auburn Community Hospital Strong & Central New York Communities Safe
U.S. Senate Majority Leader Charles E. Schumer and U.S. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand today announced that Auburn Community Hospital will receive $2,225,597 from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security’s Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to cover costs associated with emergency protective measures taken for their COVID responses dating back to the start of the pandemic in Spring 2020. The funds reimburse for expenses related to COVID-19 testing, supplies, and medications for treating COVID-19 positive patients admitted to the hospital. This funding is provided at a 100% federal cost share, which Schumer fought hard to include for NY since the pandemic began.
“As the only hospital in Cayuga County, Auburn Community Hospital heroically stepped up by increasing spending, while experiencing significant revenue loss, and working ceaselessly to help our rural communities beat back this virus for over two years. That is why I fought tooth and nail to deliver their long overdue rural hospital funding from the American Rescue Plan last week, and why I am proud to announce this additional $2.2 million in support from FEMA to help the hospital recover and continue to keep our communities safe,” said Senator Schumer. “Upstate New York and its hospitals, especially in our rural areas, were among the hardest hit in the nation, and with this funding, Auburn and its incredible workforce will receive the dollars they need, and so very much deserve, to keep saving lives.”
“Health care providers lost billions of dollars during the pandemic,” said Senator Gillibrand. “This federal support will help ensure that Auburn Community Hospital can maintain staffing levels, provide PPE, and continue to keep Cayuga County safe as we encounter and fight new variants of COVID-19. I will keep working to ensure that New York medical facilities have the resources they need to continue to provide quality care to every New Yorker.”
This funding comes on the heels of Schumer announcing last week that, following his direct call to Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Xavier Becerra, Auburn Community Hospital would receive over $3.4 million in long overdue federal funding from the American Rescue Plan’s (ARP) pandemic Provider Relief Fund for rural hospitals. The senators said that today’s funding, in tandem with the funding Schumer just secured will give Auburn the resources it needs to combat the recent spike in COVID-19 hospitalizations in Auburn, cover rising costs, and continue to keep Central New York safe.
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