By Sarah Dobson, Director of Public Policy and Advocacy, and Christopher Findlay, Senior Marketing Manager
This week, the Senate introduced the Health, Economic Assistance, Liability Protection and Schools (HEALS) Act following the passage of the HEROES Act by the U.S. House of Representatives in May. The bill in its current form is, unfortunately, not an adequate response to the needs of health and human services nonprofits or our country’s most vulnerable people. The current draft excludes many of the areas most important to our members as outlined in our key priorities and our ongoing advocacy.
As a final version is negotiated, we implore senators to address the urgent remaining needs of nonprofit health and human services providers, namely:
Access to forgivable loans for nonprofits of all sizes
An increase in the federal unemployment insurance reimbursement for self-funded nonprofits to 100 percent of costs
Additional targeted financial resources for nonprofit front line health and human services providers
Increased funding of $2 billion for vulnerable children and youth
A strong infusion of additional fiscal relief for state and local governments
Without needed resources, nonprofits will be unable to meet the increasing needs of individuals and communities during this time of crisis. We will continue to encourage senators to amend the draft of the bill and remind them of the importance of nonprofit services to communities across the country.
