Bipartisan Efforts to Support Health and Fitness Facilities
The Health & Fitness Recovery Act of 2020 gains momentum.
The Health & Fitness Recovery Act of 2020 (H.R. 8485), introduced in Congress on October 1, 2020, reflects efforts by lawmakers and lobbyists to provide financial relief to health and fitness businesses hurt by the pandemic. As previously reported, national fitness chains have filed for bankruptcy, with many facility closures and billions of dollars in lost revenue.
The proposed legislation seeks to aid affected businesses by creating a $30 billion fund for grants. Each grant would max out at an actual business loss of 10% of the previous year’s revenue or $10 million, whichever is less. To learn more about what types of health and fitness businesses could potentially receive relief, visit congress.gov/bill/116th-congress/house-bill/8485/text.
Shirley Eichenberger-Archer, JD, MA
Shirley Eichenberger-Archer, JD, MA, is an internationally acknowledged integrative health and mindfulness specialist, best-selling author of 16 fitness and wellness books translated into multiple languages and sold worldwide, award-winning health journalist, contributing editor to Fitness Journal, media spokesperson, and IDEA's 2008 Fitness Instructor of the Year. She's a 25-year industry veteran and former health and fitness educator at the Stanford Prevention Research Center, who has served on multiple industry committees and co-authored trade books and manuals for ACE, ACSM and YMCA of the USA. She has appeared on TV worldwide and was a featured trainer on America's Next Top Model.
