HENRICO, VA (April 18, 2025) – This week, Virginia Community Healthcare Association (VCHA) was made aware of inquiries from some community health centers who submitted draw requests from the Payment Management System (PMS) – the system that processes grant payments for the federal government – but have not yet received the funds.

Beginning last month, community health centers, who rely on federal grants to keep their doors open, were required to include a narrative explanation in PMS for draw requests, detailing the expenses supported by these draws. In light of recent inquiries from health centers regarding submitted draw requests, many are showing as “in transit” and have not yet been funded.

VCHA has been informed that the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is currently experiencing delays in the processing of these draws. As part of their review process, HHS is assessing each narrative submitted and, in certain instances, may contact health centers to request additional information.

While the present challenges do not appear to be as extensive as those encountered earlier this year, there is a possibility that health centers will need to provide more detailed documentation upon request. This could include general ledger listings or personnel information related to charges on the grant.

With sufficient advance notice, Virginia’s community health centers are well-equipped to respond promptly and effectively to the federal government. They have a long-standing history of complying with the stringent guidelines essential for securing federal funding, ensuring that they can continue to provide critical services to their communities.

Community health centers depend on a steady stream of funding to maintain their operations. If the delays in funding continue, the consequences could be harmful to thousands who rely on these health centers for life-saving care. Additionally, health centers could face the grim reality of scaling back their services, severely limiting their capacity to provide essential care to hard working individuals and families in need.

In summary, VCHA wants to highlight the following key points:

• Draw requests are currently taking longer to process and are marked as “in transit” in PMS.
• Submitted narratives are under review, and additional documentation may be required.
• Health centers should monitor communications from defendthespend@hhs.gov. 
• At this time, no widespread issues beyond a general backlog have been identified.

VCHA will continue to monitor this situation closely and will provide further updates as they become available.