Tuesday, April 21, 2020
Dear Providers,
At the outset of the COVID-19 public health emergency, our leadership team acted quickly to protect the system of IDHS-funded organizations who carry out life-sustaining work in communities across Illinois. We know you are on the front lines of this epidemic and we are proud to continue to support the work that you do every day. As the emergency continues, our goal and commitment to the retention and sustainability of our network remains the same.
As you know, the federal government recently made additional resources available through the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. These funds are intended to help organizations like yours with resources so that you can continue doing your important work. We know some of you applied for this federal funding and we greatly appreciate it. Our aim is to use all available federal funding first and then turn to State resources to keep you funded.
In order to do that, we are writing to ask if you have applied for federal CARES Act funding and the status of your application. This will help to ensure that we do not duplicate expenses covered by the new federal funding opportunities, remain in compliance with federal and state government guidelines around the CARES Act, and maximize the availability of limited State dollars.
- We need you to complete the survey found at dhs.illinois.gov/cv/ppp to let us know if you have or have not applied for forgivable loans through the CARES Act's Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) or for benefits through the Pandemic Unemployment Assistance program. The survey requires you to certify and attest any actions your agency has taken related to the CARES Act.
- We continue to ask fee-for-service providers and those with a fixed rate grant, to submit billings for services provided. IDHS will continue to reimburse for services provided.
It is our understanding that there are discussions underway at the federal level to commit additional dollars to this program. For providers who have not applied for federal funding, in anticipation of additional federal PPP funding, IDHS is planning to provide all eligible community providers with more related information, tools, and one-on-one technical assistance in partnership with our stakeholder organizations.
As this process moves ahead, if your organization has questions about the PPP or other federal relief options, please email DHS.PPPQuestions@illinois.gov.
Thank you for your work. You are making Illinois proud as we fight this pandemic.
Sincerely,
Grace B. Hou
Secretary, IDHS
Illinois Department of Human Services
