NEWS
Wednesday, december 29, 2021
HermIsTOnHeraLd.cOm • A7
Ben Lonergan/Hermiston Herald, File
Motorcycles fill a portion of the parking lot at Good Shepherd
Medical Center in Hermiston on Dec. 5, 2020, following the
Echo Toy Run. Good Shepherd Health Care System, which
operates the hospital, received $2.6 million in 2021 through
an American Rescue Plan program for rural hospitals.
COVID-19 relief
program sends
nearly $8 million
to Northeastern
Oregon hospitals
Program for funding
rural hospitals also
provides $29.4m to
Portland hospitals
By ALEX WITTWER
eO media Group
A bevy of local hospitals
and providers are receiving
more than $7.8 million in
funds through the American
Rescue Plan via a program
specific to rural hospitals.
While the fund allocated
$118 million to hospitals
across the state, nearly 25%,
or more than $29.4 million,
was sent to hospitals in Port-
land — mostly to Provi-
dence, a hospital chain that
serves the Willamette Val-
ley and coastal regions of
Oregon.
The largest single pay-
ment in Northeastern Ore-
gon went to Good Shep-
herd Health Care System,
Hermiston, which collected
a little more than $2.6 mil-
lion, while Baker City’s
Saint Alphonsus Medical
Center received more than
$1.1 million through the
program. The list of pro-
viders and suppliers that
were awarded funds also
includes: Interpath Labora-
tories, Pendleton; Center for
Human Development Inc.,
La Grande; Wallowa County
Health Care District, Enter-
prise; Blue Mountain Hos-
pital District, John Day; and
Morrow County Health Dis-
trict, Boardman.
“Good Shepherd Health
Care System did receive the
$2.6 million, and we plan
on using it for either of two
areas — to be applied to
additional COVID expenses
we have incurred or to lost
revenue due to the COVID
pandemic,” Caitlin Cozad,
marketing and communi-
cations director for Good
Shepherd Health Care Sys-
tem, said in an email.
An official with Baker
City’s Saint Alphonsus Med-
ical Center said the funds
will be crucial in renewing
depleted resources and hir-
ing temporary staff such as
nurses.
The American Rescue
Plan Rural payment pro-
gram pool totals nearly $7.5
billion in federal funds, and
was targeted toward suppli-
ers and providers that serve
rural Medicaid, Children’s
Health Insurance Program
and Medicare beneficiaries,
according to a release from
the U.S. Department of
Health and Human Services.
“Health care provid-
ers in rural communities
have been hit hard by the
COVID-19 pandemic, and
they continue to experience
significant financial hard-
ships,” U.S. Health and
Human Services Secretary
Xavier Becerra said in a
press release. “The infusion
of these funds will be crit-
ical to ensuring rural com-
munities maintain access to
high-quality health care and
addressing urgent needs like
workforce recruitment and
retention.”
Payments ranged from as
little as $500, which went
to providers such as indi-
vidually licensed psychi-
atrists and social workers,
to several million dollars.
The largest single award for
Oregon went to Central Ore-
gon’s Saint Charles Health
System, which received
more than $10.5 million.
Of the nearly 500 awards
distributed, the most fre-
quent award was $500,
which went to 88 Oregon
suppliers and providers.
Provisions in the pro-
gram allowed providers
in the Portland metropol-
itan area to receive fund-
ing, even though there was
a separate fund of $9 bil-
lion already earmarked for
providers and suppliers in
non-rural areas. Clinics and
providers in Portland that
received funding included
Northwest Urology in the
Pearl District of Portland,
which received just more
than $90,000.
According to U.S. Health
and Human Services, pro-
viders who serve Medic-
aid, CHIP, and Medicare
patients who live in rural
communities are eligible for
the ARP Rural payments. As
well, providers who serve
any patients living in Fed-
eral Office of Rural Health
Policy-defined rural areas
with Medicaid, CHIP, or
Medicare coverage, and
who otherwise meet the eli-
gibility criteria, will receive
a minimum payment.
Other Portland busi-
nesses that received fund-
ing include optometrist clin-
ics, acupuncturists, a dentist
office, retirement homes and
Portland State University —
which received just more
than $1 million, though the
university does have its own
on-campus clinic.
U.S. Health and Human
Services did not respond to
requests for comment about
the requirements for the pay-
ments before publication.
Desert Lanes Family Fun Center - Hermiston
KEEP IT
LOCAL