Page 32 - CANNABIS NEWS FLORIDA JUNE 2020

Achieve 100% Forgiveness on Your PPP Loan

The Paycheck Protection force before February 15, (an average of $6,153 for eight weeks), borrower, the FTE for that person may be
Program (PPP) of the 2020 and earned $4,000 for the eight-week counted in the restored count. That sepa-
CARES Act authorized ● Interest on mortgage loan period, that is a 35% decrease. rated employee who rejects the offer of
loans to small businesses to and debt obligations that Therefore, $6,153 at 75% is $4,615, less re-employment may forfeit eligibility for
pay their employees and were dated before February the actual $4,000 paid, and we arrive at continued unemployment compensation.
some of the businesses 15, 2020 the $615 amount that is not forgivable. To receive loan forgiveness, submit a
overhead expenses during ● Utility payments for 4. There is a loss of forgiveness if there request to your servicing lender. The
the COVID-19 crisis. The which services began before is a reduction in the number of employ- request will include documents that veri-
loan amounts can be for- February 15, 2020 – Utilities ees paid over the eight-week loan period. fy the number of full-time equivalent
given under Section 1106 includes Electric, Gas, To find the reduction, take the payroll employees and pay rates, as well as the
of the Act as long as certain Water, Transportation costs and multiply it by the Average payments made on other eligible expens-
conditions are met, and Utility Fees, Telephone, and Number of Full-Time Equivalent es, as identified above. You must certify
knowing those conditions BY ROMEO CHICCO, Internet Access. Employees (FTEs) per month for the that the documents are true and that you
at the start of the loan CPA ● Refinancing of an SBA eight weeks beginning on loan disburse- used the forgiveness amount to keep
process is crucial. I have Economic Injury Disaster ment, and divide it by one of the follow- employees and make eligible payments.
identified four areas of Loan (EIDL) made between ing two options: The lender must then make a decision on
interest to receive 100% forgiveness. January 31, 2020 and April 3, 2020 1. The average number of FTEs per the forgiveness within 60 days per SBA
1. Let’s start with what the proceeds 2. As the benefit is named ‘Paycheck’ month from February 15, 2019 to June guidance..
can be used for. Over the eight-week protection, it should be expected that the 30, 2019, which is suggested for seasonal For amounts not forgiven, the Act
period following the date of receiving the majority of the proceeds must be spent employers states that the interest rate can be no
loan disbursement, the funds can be used on payroll costs. To not lose any of the 2. The average number of FTEs per greater than 4% as set by your lender
for the following: forgiveness amount, at least 75% must be month from January 1, 2020 to February (currently it is 1%), and payments are
● First and foremost, it is ‘payroll spent on these costs. If any more than 29, 2020 deferred for the first six months, howev-
costs’. This is the gross payroll and the 25% is spent on non-payroll costs, then A simple example is if you had ten er, interest will accrue during this period.
employer share of group health insurance that amount is not forgiven. employees pre-COVID-19 and five The loan will be due in two years, and
and retirement plan contributions, and 3. There is a loss of forgiveness if there employees post loan, the forgivable there is no prepayment penalty or fees for
the employer portion of state and local is a reduction in the amount paid to each amount is 50% of the total loan amount earlier payoff.
payroll taxes. Payments to independent employee over the eight-week period for received. The average number of FTEs The SBA may have released new guid-
contractors (1099s) do not count as pay- any employee. For each employee, com- shall be determined by calculating the ance on the forgiveness process, so be
roll costs, and amounts paid to any indi- pare the wages paid during the eight- average number of employees for each sure to check with sba.gov for the latest
vidual employee is capped at $100,000 week period against the wages during the pay period falling within a month. details. This article is to be used for dis-
on an annualized basis. This may be cal- first quarter 2020. If there was greater You have until June 30, 2020 to restore cussion purposes and you should seek
culated as $15,385 based on eight weeks. than a 25% decrease in annualized wages your salary/wage levels (item #3 above) guidance from your tax advisor and the
Qualified leave wages allowed under the paid to any employee, take the amount or full-time employment (item #4 above) bank that originated the loan.
Families First Coronavirus Response Act the employee would have received for the for any changes made between February
(FFCRA) and benefits for owners (health eight-week period at 75% of the first 15, 2020 and April 26, 2020. Romeo Chicco, CPA, is
care expenses, retirement contributions, quarter 2020 rate less the amount the The SBA has recently published that if President/CEO of PayMaster.
and employer state taxes) also do not employee actually received for the eight- you have made a good faith, written offer For more information,
count towards payroll costs. week period. For example, if an employ- of rehire, the employee rejects the offer, visit www.paymaster.com.
● Rent payments on leases that were in ee earned $10,000 for the first quarter and the rejection is documented by the

Cleveland Clinic Florida Begins Conviva Donates $750,000

Clinical Trial to Help to Feeding South Florida

COVID-19-Positive Patients to Aid Seniors During

In an effort to continue delivering world-class care to patients during the novel Coronavirus Pandemic
coronavirus pandemic, Cleveland Clinic Florida has received approval to begin
clinical trials for a variety of new treatments to help COVID-19-positive patients.
One of the most promising treatments is convalescent plasma therapy, which col- To meet the challenge of ensuring adequate healthy food supplies for the vul-
lects antibody rich plasma from donors who have recovered from COVID-19 to use nerable senior population in South Florida, whose needs have greatly increased
for patients currently struggling with the virus. Cleveland Clinic Florida recently due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Conviva Care Centers have stepped up to pro-
received expanded access to use this therapy for those admitted with moderate to vide a donation of $750,000 to support Feeding South Florida. Conviva
severe COVID-19 disease. announced that the company is donating $2 million to food banks in Florida
One problem facing South Florida is lack of plasma donors. However, since and Texas.
implementing drive-thru testing in mid-March, Cleveland Clinic Florida sites have Through its financial support of Feeding South Florida, Conviva will ensure
been gathering information on patients who are interested in plasma donations and that more seniors in the community they serve will have access to nutritious
currently has a list of 160 willing participants. options and can avoid the negative impacts of food insecurity. This support
The convalescent plasma collection will be collected by OneBlood, an independ- continues Conviva’s long-standing relationships with local food banks, to help
ent not-for-profit blood bank serving Florida. Plasma donations from Cleveland their patients through programs both in and out of their centers.
Clinic Florida patients could potentially benefit COVID-19 patients across the “We applaud all of the hard work and dedication Feeding South Florida’s
entire state. Cleveland Clinic Florida continues to refer willing recovered donors incredible team is putting forward during a time when supplying access to
who meet criteria to OneBlood daily. healthy food is so critical,” said Kevin Meriwether, President of Conviva Care
“Our objective throughout the COVID-19 outbreak has been to provide the best Solutions. “We’re honored to do what we can to show our support and appre-
possible care for patients, which includes developing innovative treatments for the ciation, while also continuing to help treat our patients and the community.
virus,” said Wael Barsoum, M.D., CEO and President of Cleveland Clinic Florida. Our relationship with the food bank is very important to us, and we’re proud to
“We are fortunate to have a team of experts who can help advance treatment call them our partners.”
options that will benefit patients now and in the future.” “We are grateful to Conviva for its $750,000 transformational gift toward
To donate plasma, patients must be symptom free for 14 days and test negative ending hunger for older adults throughout South Florida,” said Paco Vélez,
for COVID-19. President and CEO of Feeding South Florida. “With Conviva’s support, Feeding
Hospitalized patients who are interested in receiving a transfusion will have to South Florida will continue putting food on the tables of those most at-risk and
consent to the trial, and must be a blood match to a donor. in need of our assistance during this critical time.”

South Florida Hospital News southfloridahospitalnews.com June 2020 9