Yesterday Argentum joined with AHCA/NCAL, ASHA, and LeadingAge to jointly send a letter (attached) to President Biden, HHS Secretary Becerra, and HHS Deputy Secretary Palm urging for the immediate release of the remaining provider relief funds to long-term care providers. We stressed that providers have been anticipating the Phase 4 relief payments for months, and directed the Administration to make funds available in full and as quickly as possible.
Today we are also formally beginning a five-week campaign encouraging the administration to “Release the PRF” (see press release). As you know, Argentum has been working to disburse these funds, which are believed to be under final review at the White House Office of Management and Budget. The funds had been jeopardized in the negotiations over the bipartisan infrastructure package, but because of your combined unprecedented outreach, we were able to secure the Congressional support to prevent the reallocation of funds. With the Senate’s passage of the infrastructure package yesterday, and as it next heads to the House, we will be vigilant to ensure these relief funds remain available as they were intended and will be shifting our message to “Release the PRF”.
Argentum is committed to doing everything possible to get these funds released to providers. This campaign is intended to increase pressure on the White House, which has full authority to release the PRF, through direct outreach to the administration, grassroots engagement, strategic media placements, and Congressional support. Each week of the campaign will feature a different theme and will ask for active engagement among everyone in the senior living industry to ensure our message is amplified as loud as possible.
August Campaign: Release the Provider Relief Fund (see full campaign details here)
- Week 1 (8/9): Building a Campaign for Seniors
- Week 2 (8/16): We Continue Standing with Seniors!
- Week 3 (8/23): Calling on the Administration
- Week 4 (8/30): Activating the Grassroots
- Week 5 (9/6): Labor Day Call to Action
CALL TO ACTION: This week we are asking for your help to amplify our message through three actions: emailing the administration, using social media, and through our grassroots platform:
- Send an email directly to administration officials, sharing the coalition letter (attached) and the urgent need for relief to your communities. Emails should be sent to: Austin Butterworth, Director of Private Sector Engagement at the White House Office of Public Engagement (Austin.z.Butterworth@who.eop.gov); Carissa Smith, Senior Advisor at the White House Office of Public Engagement (carissa.j.smith@who.eop.gov); Rose Sullivan, Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary at HHS (Rose.Sullivan@hhs.gov); and Leslie Zelenko, Senior Advisor And Congressional Liaison at HHS (Leslie.Zelenko@hhs.gov).
- Tweet at the administration and Congress, using our sample tweets and tagging your elected officials (replace the highlighted text with twitter handles).
Week 1 for Congress:@[Member of Congress] Thank you for protecting the Provider Relief Fund! Assisted living caregivers, who serve the population most vulnerable to COVID, desperately need this relief. Seniors & their caregivers hope that you will ask [@POTUS/@WhiteHouse/@HHSGov/@SecBecerra] to immediately #releasethePRF
Week 1 for Administration: The remaining Provider Relief Fund must be allocated to assisted living caregivers, who serve the population most vulnerable to COVID! Seniors & their caregivers desperately need this relief and are asking [@POTUS/@WhiteHouse/@HHSGov/@SecBecerra] to immediately #releasethePRF
- Use our grassroots platform to send messages to the administration and Congress. Pre-written messages are available and it takes less than a minute to contact policymakers (only need to input your name and address). We encourage you to forward this link to your colleagues.
We thank you again for your continued support as we work together to get the PRF disbursed. Please know that we share your frustration with this process and we are doing everything possible to ensure senior living providers have access to the relief needed to overcome the pandemic. We ask for you to remain engaged in these next several weeks during this campaign. If there is anything we can do to better serve you or the industry, please don’t hesitate to reach out.
James R. Balda
President & CEO
ARGENTUM | Expanding Senior Living
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