Month: March 2020

Good Morning to all Schiff Clients,

I hope each of you are well and safe and healthy!

Today at 12 Noon, I will be sharing my understanding of the CARES ACT along with the Applications for Funds within the State of MARYLAND (Instructions for Maryland are below). For the Maryland Application, you will need the following:

1. Federal ID#
2. Maryland Unemployment #
3. SIAC # (621210)
4. Attach a IRS Form W-9
5. Attached 2 Years of Profit & Loss Statements
6. Attach the MSDA e mail from 03.17.20, recommending you close your Dental Practice

To sign up for the 12 Noon webinar, please register here  >>  https://www.msdaf.org/assetprotectioncourse?utm_source=MSDA+Webinars+-+COVID-19+Update&utm_campaign=MSDA+Webinars+-+COVID-19+Update&utm_medium=email

 

Here are the details as well as the hyper links for the MARYLAND Application

For Your Business

Maryland Small Business COVID-19 Emergency Relief Loan Fund

The COVID-19 Emergency Relief Loan Fund is being administered by the Maryland Department of Commerce. It offers $75 Million of working capital to assist for-profit small businesses with less than 50 full- and part-time employees that are experiencing disrupted operations due to COVID-19. Eligible uses include working capital to support payroll expenses, rent, mortgage payments, utility expenses, or other similar expenses related to the ordinary course of business operations. General terms and conditions include the following:

• Loans up to $50,000 (not to exceed three months of cash operating expenses).
• 0% for the first 12 months; 2% for the remaining 36 months.
• Deferral of any payments for the first 12 months, and straight amortization beginning in the 13th month through the 36th month.
• Business must be established prior to March 9, 2020 and in good standing.
• Applicants must have employees on their payroll for whom they have had payroll taxes withheld (i.e. W-2 employees).
• Two years of historical financial statements and most recent interim statement to benchmark revenue against (if available).
• Six month pro forma of estimated lost revenue or other documented loss evidence.
• Minimum personal credit score of 575.
• No collateral requirements.

These funds are intended to provide interim relief, complementing actions with your bank, business interruption insurance provider, and other financial partners. Use the links below to view more information and to access the online application.

COVID-19 Emergence Relief Loan Fund Webpage

COVID-19 Emergency Relief Loan Fund Application (UPDATED LINK)

Maryland Small Business COVID-19 Emergency Relief Grant Fund

The COVID-19 Emergency Relief Grant Fund is being administered by the Maryland Department of Commerce. It offers $50 Million of working capital to assist small businesses and nonprofit organizations with less than 50 full- and part-time employees that are experiencing disrupted operations due to COVID-19. Eligible uses include working capital to support payroll expenses, rent, mortgage payments, utility expenses, or other similar expenses related to the ordinary course of business operations. General terms and conditions include the following:

• Grants up to $10,000 not to exceed three months of cash operating expenses for Maryland businesses and nonprofits impacted by the COVID-19 with 50 or fewer employees.
• Must be established prior to March 9, 2020.
• Business must be in good standing.
• Applicants must have employees on their payroll for whom they have had payroll taxes withheld (i.e. W-2 employees).
• Annual Revenues of the business or nonprofit not to exceed $5 million as evidenced by Financial Statement or other financial documentation.

These funds are intended to provide interim relief, complementing actions with your bank, business interruption insurance provider, and other financial partners and the participant is expected to seek longer term funding through another source. Applications are being accepted online. Use the link below to apply.

COVID-19 Emergency Relief Grant Fund Webpage

COVID-19 Emergency Relief Grant Fund Application (UPDATED LINK)

 

If you are in need of your two (2) years Profit & Loss Statement, please email your Schiff Team Member directly and they will be happy to help you!

 

Please stay safe and healthy
My best to all
Allen

Good morning to all! As you know, things are evolving quickly…this is a very “fluid” issue…suggestions are welcomed!

Here is a checklist of items that you should consider putting in place this week (beginning Monday, March 23, 2020):

Banking & Finance – “Payment Relief”

Please be sure to email your commercial banks (please cc me on the e-mail) and request for “payment relief” from your bank. Most banks are offering between 60 to 90 days deferment. Please visit www.schiffcpa.com for daily updates as to what your bank may be offering.

Here is a “suggested e-mail” that you are welcome to use:

Good Morning,

I am writing to you requesting help with a “90-day payment relief” for my current commercial loan with your bank. This is as a result of the state and national dental association’s recommendations to limit our practice to emergency treatment due to the COVID-19 outbreak. In addition, I would like to extend my current line of credit from $50,000 to $100,000. Any help that you can offer me would be greatly appreciated. Please let me know what information you may need from Schiff & Associates (my CPA) in evaluating these credit facility requests.

Most Sincerely,

Dr. _____________

Other Banking Opportunities – SBA Financing

Consider applying for the SBA Disaster Relief Loan. Please consider the SBA if you have already exhausted your other financing options, such as your current lender or line of credit increases.
Here is the link:  https://disasterloan.sba.gov/ela/

Credit Card Financing

Please contact your credit card company. Some credit card companies are offering $0 minimum payment and 0% interest for 60 to 90 days. Some have already removed March 2020 finance charges!

Contact Your Landlord

Please reach out to your landlord. Some landlords have already written our clients, offering no rent for April 2020 and repaying the rent (spreading it out) once we get back to business. Here is a suggested e-mail to your landlord:

Dear _______,

I hope this email finds you and your family well & safe.  I am writing this email to request “deferment of my lease payment” for at least the next 60 to 90 days, considering the current COVID-19 situation.  I have been requested to close the office for now from both the American Dental Association (ADA) and the Maryland (your State name here) State Dental Association (MSDA) until this situation has been resolved. As a result of closing, I am unable to see patients in a regular capacity, so I am requesting this lease deferment.

I look forward to hearing from you soon. I have also copied my CPA in case there is financial information you may need in evaluating this request.

Thank you,

_________ DDS / DMD

Other Practice Expenditures

Dental supplies and lab fees represent your largest expenditures outside of payroll. Please ask these vendors for payment options during the time the practice has limited operations. Payroll, the largest practice expenditure, hopefully, will be covered by the Federal Stimulus Package we are waiting for at the time of this writing. Please also consider stopping AUTOMATIC WITHDRAWALS from your practice and your personal checking accounts.

Contact Service Companies

Examples: Demandforce, Lighthouse, Patient Activator, BirdEye, etc, social media, Yelp (look through credit card & bank transactions for any other vendors).

Scale down some of these services if you feel it would be appropriate. Please keep in mind, you may need them, for example, if you need to send a “mass email” to your patients, so please be careful with your decision here.

Health Insurance

I am recommending that you continue to pay for health insurance unless your broker advises otherwise. While this may not be required, it can go a long way to helping your employees.

Your Payroll If You Are Incorporated

At this time, please do not run your own pay through your payroll service in order to save both the payroll fees, retirement contributions, and payroll taxes at this time.  If you need money from your practice, please withdraw funds as an “officer loan”, “distribution” or “draw”. This is true for the self-employed as well.

April 15th Tax Deadline  

This has now changed to July 15th Federal tax deadline. Even though the Federal tax filing deadline and payments have been extended to July 15th, I would like to file your individual tax returns as soon as possible. If you have a refund coming to you, we want to get you that money as soon as possible. If you owe, you now have until July 15th to pay. This will help you budget and allow you to know what your liability is. If you have a tax refund, you may apply it to cover future estimated tax payments. Or you can request a tax refund to be sent to you now. Please us know!

Please feel free to forward this email to any of your colleagues and peers. All of our previous newsletters are posted on my website https://schiffcpa.com/updates-on-covid-19/.

Stay safe, stay healthy and remain POSITIVE! We will get through this…together!

Wishing you the very best,

Allen Schiff, CPA, CFE
Schiff & Associates, LLC

We are here for you!

Needless to say, last week was a very trying week, but also a rewarding week as well! I am here for you!

Many of you are asking so many excellent questions. The most popular question is, “I have paid my last payroll for March 2020, what should I do”?

As you know, each situation is different. Some of you are continuing to pay your teams. Some have decided to pay their teams their paid-time off hours (PTO). Some of you have stopped paying your teams. That is all fine. Please keep in mind, if you eventually suggest to your teams to file for unemployment, your message should be consistent with all of your employees. You should put the message in writing , either via group e-mail or group text e-mail. Below is a suggested letter that you may send. Please keep in mind, I am not a labor attorney; you should run this by your HR attorney before releasing it. The letter is merely an accommodation and a suggestion.

######################

Dear Employee,

Because of the current crisis, we have decided to close the dental office at this time. As a result and as your employer, I (we) have decided to lay you off from your current employment with_____________________ DDS, DMD, EIN#______________, effective Monday, March 23, 2020.

We are encouraging you to file for (Maryland, District of Columbia, Virginia, West Virginia, North Carolina, Texas, Missouri ) unemployment at this time. Here is the website that you should use to file your unemployment claim. Please note, our last payroll date is _______________.

Maryland

https://secure-2.dllr.state.md.us/NetClaims/Welcome.aspx

District of Columbia

https://does.dcnetworks.org/claimantservices/Logon.aspx

Virginia

https://www.vawc.virginia.gov/vosnet/registration/ind/uiclaim.aspx

West Virginia

https://uc.workforcewv.org/consumer/

North Carolina

https://des.nc.gov/apply-unemployment/filing-your-unemployment-application

Texas

https://twc.texas.gov/jobseekers/unemployment-benefits-services#applyBenefits

Missouri

https://www.mo.gov/work/unemployment/

Please acknowledge receipt of this letter by indicating your signature and date below and return a copy to us for your personnel file. 

Very truly yours, 

________________________________, DDS, DMD

#####################

Once again, I am not a HR attorney, so please be sure to have your HR attorney approve the above.

Stimulus Package

We are still waiting to hear about the Federal “$1 Trillion Dollar Stimulus Package”. As I mentioned on the MSDA webinar on Friday, March 20, 2020, it is my understanding the Stimulus Package could include up to 4 months of your payroll. THIS IS UNCONFIRMED at this time, for there is currently a major debate going on within Congress. The $1 trillion could in fact be $2 trillion…we simply do not know…we have to wait and be patient!

My point of bringing up the Stimulus Package is this: the whole unemployment issue could be a “non-issue” because the Stimulus Package may include a “government loan” whereby the Federal Government will reimburse our payrolls. Please remember, Schiff & Associates is in this with you because 99% of our client base are all dentists…like you!

Finally, I want to emphasize to each of you that you must remain calm, remain confident, and have positive “themes” within all of your correspondence with your teams. Together we shall overcome this crisis!

If you have specific questions, please email me (aschiff@schiffcpa.com). I will respond as quickly as possible.

Wishing you the very best,
Allen Schiff, CPA, CFE
Schiff & Associates, LLC

Ask your members of Congress to include dentistry in COVID-19 relief packages

As you know, the novel Coronavirus, COVID-19, has resulted in dentistry taking action to stop its spread. The ADA has called for dentists to stop performing elective procedures until further notice to curtail the virus. This has resulted in significant negative repercussions to the cash flows of many dentists around the country. To address the issues stemming from actions taken by dentistry to halt the spread of COVID-19, we are asking that Congress include dentistry in any COVID-19 relief packages. We are seeking for Congress to include these measures to help the profession: Easing and expediting the process for businesses to apply for Economic Injury Disaster Loans through the Small Business Administration. Deferring all monthly payments on federal student loans for all health care professionals, including dentists, without penalty. Deferring or eliminating payroll tax matching and payments, as well as deferring quarterly income tax payments for small business owners. Providing additional tax cuts for small businesses, which could include expanding Section 199A to include all small businesses regardless of income. Applying all telehealth de-regulation to virtual check-ins for dental evaluations (teledentistry) and support payment for these services within both Medicaid as well as commercial plans. Waiving an Employer’s Annual Federal Unemployment Tax for 2020 for small business employers with under 50 employees or freeze the current rate. Requiring all business Interruption Insurance policies to cover national emergencies, including those related to diseases such as COVID-19. Allowing for a onetime withdrawal without penalty from an individual’s 401k. We believe that including these policies in any COVID-19 stimulus package will help the dentists, like yourself, that are taking voluntary action to prevent any further spread of the virus.   Take action today by asking your Senators and Representative to include programs aimed at helping dentistry in any COVID-19 relief packages.   Thank you,   Mike Graham Senior Vice President Government and Public Affairs   Click here to take action now!

Tell Congress to consider dentistry in COVID-19 response

AGD is contacting you to ask for your help in generating support for targeted relief funding for dental practices amid the COVID-19 outbreak. Many dentists are voluntarily postponing elective procedures to help combat the spread of COVID-19, leaving them on the hook for fixed practice expenses while facing a significant dip in revenues. As Congress and the Administration move forward with developing an economic stimulus package that will support health care providers and their patients during this crisis, AGD is working to ensure that general dentists and their patients are included in those proposals. AGD has requested that direct financial support be allocated to ensuring the availability of personal protective equipment (PPE) and supporting the many dental practices that are facing financial hardship due to voluntarily postponement of elective procedures in response to the spread of COVID-19. Three weeks of lost billings for a general dentist that owns their practice could, on average, amount to a loss of over $41,000, while potentially incurring over $23,000 in practice expenses, excluding owner dentist salaries. The nationwide impact on general dentists of lost billings from elective procedures coupled with fixed practice expenses during a 3-week period will amount to financial losses in the billions of dollars, even by low-end impact estimates. These losses will undoubtedly harm the nation’s economy and the ability of dentists to maintain their practices and deliver care to patients. We need your help to elevate this message in Congress by voicing your concerns to the legislators who represent you in Washington, D.C. Please Take Action and Urge Your Members of Congress to Support COVID-19-Related Relief for Dentistry Today! Click here to tell Congress to consider dentistry in COVID-19 response!

My best to all…please stay healthy!

 

 

HR6201 – FAMILIES FIRST CORONAVIRUS RESPONSE ACT

 

The bill still needs to be passed by the Senate and then signed by the President before it becomes law. This is a very “fluid” situation. It is changing by the minute.

So many of you have called, e-mailed and texted me your questions. All the questions revolve around the payment of compensation to your teams, now and in the future.

Below are my notes as they relate to your questions:

 

Unemployment issues

 

Employees can collect 24 weeks of unemployment.

 

It is mandatory to pay employees if they are being asked to work remotely.

 

Unemployment law is unique to each State. If the Dental Practice is closed and it is out of the employee’s control, the employee can apply for unemployment.

 

Schiff Dental CPA Clients – Please go to your individual State unemployment website to review the frequently asked questions. Please see the direct links below:

 

Maryland – https://www.dllr.state.md.us/employment/unemployment.shtml

Virginia – https://www.governor.virginia.gov/media/governorvirginiagov/governor-of-virginia/pdf/Frequently-Asked-Questions-from-Workers-Regarding-COVID-19.pdf

 

DC – https://dccouncil.us/council-unanimously-passes-emergency-covid-19-response-bill/

 

Pennsylvania – https://www.uc.pa.gov/Pages/covid19.aspx

 

Texas – https://www.khou.com/article/news/health/coronavirus/how-do-i-file-for-unemployment-in-texas-due-to-covid-19/285-a7ee5287-dc88-4ccc-bcb5-5d1eea831695

 

North Carolina – https://des.nc.gov/need-help/covid-19-information

 

West Virginia – Nothing posted yet.

 

No penalty now if the employee files for unemployment-this was confirmed with the ADA today (we needed to hear this today, before we could release this update).

 

Associates treated as independent contractors are not employees and cannot claim unemployment.

 

I am waiting for clarity from the stimulus package with respect to the following questions:

Does an employee have to use their PTO before they can file for unemployment?

How much of the current and future payrolls will be subsidized by the Federal Government? How will they be subsidized?

Will there be payroll tax refunds from the payroll taxes paid thus far in 2020?

Will there be “tax credits” issued in lieu of tax refunds?

 

There are still many unanswered questions. We need to be patient and allow the Stimulus Package to be passed…it is forthcoming.

 

Legal & Financial Topics

 

The ADA is trying to get dentists exempt from the HR 6201 Stimulus Bill. https://www.ada.org/en/publications/ada-news/2020-archive/march/ada-lobbies-coronavirus-legislative-package

The ADA may lobby the insurance commissioners to gain help with office overhead insurance policies (business interruption policies). Many policies exclude pandemics.

I have just become aware of some large group dental practices not abiding by the ADA recommendations and “scaring” young associates into working. This is very sad!

We are encouraging all clients to secure a line of credit (LOC) with their bank.

 

Clinical Topics

What is a “dental emergency”? Examples include life-threatening, soft tissue bleeding, postoperative, for medical clearance, denture adjustment…please see the ADA website for further definitions.

“Routine dental treatment” examples include ortho extractions, cosmetic, aesthetic, prophy.

M95 masks – You cannot practice dentistry without these masks, but these masks are almost impossible to get because they are now being directed to hospitals.

 

Covid -19 – If an employee meets the following criteria:

• The employee has a current diagnosis of COVID-19.
• The employee is quarantined (including self-imposed quarantine), at the instruction of a health care provider, employer, or government official, to prevent the spread of COVID-19.
• The employee is caring for another person who has COVID-19 or who is under a quarantine related to COVID-19.
• The employee is caring for a child or other individual who is unable to care for themselves due to the COVID-19 related closing of their school, childcare facility, or other care program.

If an Employee falls within these four (4) categories, they will qualify for the “Emergency Paid Leave Benefits”

This section creates a new federal emergency paid leave benefit program. Eligible workers will receive a benefit for a month (up to three months) in which they must take 14 or more days of leave from their work due to the qualifying COVID-19-related reasons. Days when an individual receives pay from their employer (regular wages, sick pay, or other paid time off) or unemployment compensation do not count as leave days for purposes of this benefit.

The program will be administered by the Social Security Administration (SSA).

I will be in touch as the situation progresses…please email me any specific questions you may have after you have had a chance to read this information.

 

My best to all…please stay healthy!

What a difference a weekend makes! A lot has changed since last Friday. The purpose of this email is to bring you and your team up to date on the latest C-19 financial issues. I have also included many websites for your review as well as upcoming webinars that may be of help to you and your team.

 

States Update – From my understanding, the following states have recommended that dentists only see “emergency patients” and to consider closing over the next two (2) weeks: VA, DC, MA, and CA. I have not heard recommendations for MD, PA, NC, TX, MO, and WV at the time of this writing. If you are practicing in one of these states, you now have questions regarding compensation to you and your teams.

 

From Bent Eriksen’s website:

If the employer believes it is in their best interest to close the business, for any reason, but particularly for something like a Coronavirus/influenza outbreak, then they have the right to take that action. Whether or not the employees are paid while off work will depend on their exempt/non-exempt status.

 

Exempt employees (Salary employees):

If the absence is initiated by the employee (including for his or her own illness or that of someone for whom he or she is caring), the employer may dock the exempt employee for full-day absences only, provided no work of any kind is done during the course of the day, even from home, like checking and answering emails.

If the absence is initiated by the employer (e.g., the employee must stay home for a mandatory quarantine period, even though he or she is asymptomatic and willing to come to work, business closure), the employer may dock the exempt employee only for full seven-day absences that coincide with the employer’s pay week so long as no work is performed during that entire absence.

 

Non-exempt employees (Hourly Employees):

Pay may be docked for any and all non-work time.

Tim Twigg, President and Owner of Bent Ericksen & Assoc. Below is a hyperlink to Tim’s website, that will answer all of your questions regarding your employees.

 

https://bentericksen.com/coronavirus-faqs/

If by chance you do not get your question answered, please call or email Tim at 541-685-9003  timtwigg@msn.com. Please also keep in mind, State Labor Laws will supersede Federal Laws. So, please check with the State Labor Board in the state you are practicing in.

 

Patient Office Protocol – If you do remain open, you may want to consider removing every other chair in your reception area, so you can create “social distancing”.

 

Banking – Each of you should have a line of credit. A line of credit (LOC) is designated by your banker to be used in difficult financial times. Now is the time to make sure your LOC is in place. I have spoken with all of the major banks that lend to dentists. If you are currently banking with BOA, Wells Fargo, PNC, M & T, etc, please continue to bank there and meet with your Loan Officer while discussing your line of credit with that financial institution. If on the other hand, you do not have any banking relationships, email me and I will put you in touch with a bank that may help you. Here is a “short list” of items that will be needed in order for the bank to determine your credit worthiness:

1)     Bank Application

2)     Personal Financial Statement

3)     2019 FYE P&L and Balance Sheet for all entities

4)     2019 W-2

 

Websites and other Resources

MSDA webinar

Coronavirus Disease 2019

https://mailchi.mp/37e98d3f04a1/new-coronavirus-disease-2019-covid-19-virtual-course?e=a63213230b

Tuesday, March 17, 2020
6:30 PM – 8:30 PM

COVID-19 and other Respiratory Viruses: What Every Dental Practice Needs to Know

http://vivalearning.com/

March 17, 2020 7 PM EST

Alex Nottingham JD MBA, Founder, and CEO of All-Star Dental Academy, talks about how to best approach a crisis.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UMYnVxjKXXo

Commonwealth of Virginia

What Employers Need to Know About H.R. 6201

https://www.vadental.org/news-details/2020/03/16/what-employers-need-to-know-about-h.r.-6201

 

Your Website – You may want to inform your patients what your office policy is during this crisis.

Business Interruption Insurance

https://www.natlawreview.com/article/coronavirus-factors-insurance-industry-to-consider-part-1-business-interruption

ADA

https://www.ada.org/en/publications/ada-news/2020-archive/march/ada-adds-frequently-asked-questions-from-dentists-to-coronavirus-resources

Journal of Dental Research

https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/0022034520914246?fbclid=IwAR3UUNZBfMOgiyKP6byyzEC_mCYSpyHM3JKbf8kUevIQjn2SIDb6hx-B8jw

CDC

https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/infection-control/control-recommendations.html?CDC_AA_refVal=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.cdc.gov%2Fcoronavirus%2F2019-ncov%2Fhcp%2Finfection-control.html

 

Let’s all pray this situation comes to an end real soon and we can return to normalcy!

Stay safe & healthy.

No doubt, Covid-19 has taken all of us by surprise. It is amazing how this health issue that was first detected in China in December 2019 has taken the world under its ugly arms and created havoc on our everyday life, disrupting our normal routines, our family lives and of course our business lives.

Late in this week, I have received a number of calls/e-mails about how I can prepare my business to sustain this outbreak, and what precautions I should be implementing now in order to “weather the storm”. Part of the challenge is we simply do not know how long this may last. We need to start preparing now for how this Covid-19 is impacting our patients, clients, customers, and of course our employees. Here are some tips for you to consider:

Patient Office Protocol – It may make sense when confirming future patient appointments for you to have a team member designated to call the patient and ask the very pertinent questions. Have you been out of the United States recently? If so, when? If so, where? Have you been experiencing a fever recently? What other health issues you have been experiencing recently that we should have knowledge of?

Banking – Each of you should have a line of credit. A line of credit (LOC) is designated by your banker to be used in difficult financial times. Now is the time to make sure your LOC is in place. If you don’t have a LOC, please call or email me, and I will help you secure a LOC.

Investments – Please be certain to meet with your Investment Adviser. Before the Covid-19 pandemic became an issue, the capital markets were performing amazingly well. I am hoping we can return to this normalcy soon!

Employees – Here are some of the questions and comments we are receiving from clients:

“Any idea what the Maryland law is regarding if we have to pay our employees if we have to close the office. We are not nearly as busy as normal! New patient numbers so far down and patients saying they are sick and canceling. Can our employees collect unemployment if needed?  Can I cut hours if I need to? We still have a decent week, just worried for the next month.” “I was wondering if you might have, or could get, a consensus on how other dentists are handling this virus crisis?  Closing, reduced hours, screening patients, paying staff, sick leave, lay-offs, temporary furloughs, etc, etc? Anything you know would be helpful.”

These are certainly excellent questions on everyone’s mind. As many of you know, I am the President of the Academy of Dental CPAs. At the ADCPA, we have established amazing professional relationships with the Thought Leaders in Dentistry. One of those Thought Leaders is Tim Twigg, President, and Owner of Bent Ericksen & Assoc. Below is a hyperlink to Tim’s website, that will answer all of your questions regarding your employees.

https://bentericksen.com/coronavirus-faqs/

If by chance you do not get your question answered, please call or email Tim at 541-685-9003  timtwigg@msn.com

Let’s all pray this situation comes to an end real soon and we can return to normalcy!