Chester River Health Foundation Year-End Appeal Encourages Participation Amid CARES Act Tax Incentives

The Chester River Health Foundation recently announced its year-end gift appeal to the community to help fund the purchase of a new, state of the art inpatient telemetry system for UM Shore Medical Center at Chestertown.

Telemetry technology continuously measures and monitors patients’ vital signs – at the bedside and through WIFI during transport. It’s an especially critical tool when caring for patients with any type of heart or respiratory condition.

“With the special tax benefits provided by the CARES Act for donations to qualified charities, right now is a powerful time to make a gift,” said Maryann Ruehrmund, executive director.

The expanded charitable giving incentive allows taxpayers who take the standardized deduction to also contribute and deduct up to $300 in charitable cash contributions to qualified charities this year. (This deduction is not available for gifts to donor-advised funds.) The law states that the $300 deduction is per “tax-filing unit,” so the deduction is limited to $300 for married taxpayers filing jointly.

For those who itemize their tax returns, contributions to public charities are generally limited to a percentage of a taxpayer’s adjusted gross income (AGI). The CARES Act temporarily lifted the cap on cash contributions, increasing it from 60% of AGI to 100% of AGI for 2020. Any excess contributions can be carried over to the next five years.

“The Cares Act provisions are scheduled to expire at the end of this year, so those wishing to help us AND take advantage of the possible tax savings should act quickly,” said Ruehrmund.

“Additionally, we still have a small allocation of Maryland tax credits for 2020, which are available on a first come, first served basis for gifts of $1,000 or more,” Ruehrmund said. “If someone has any interest, please contact me immediately as these tax credits will certainly be depleted before the end of the year.”

“As we look forward to brighter and healthier days in the year to come, the Chester River Health Foundation is committed more than ever to providing the support needed to enhance health care excellence for the community,” said Ruehrmund.

To make a gift online, please visit umcrhf.org/donate. Checks may be mailed to Chester River Health Foundation, 100 Brown Street, Chestertown, MD 21620 by December 31, 2020. For gifts of stock, please contact the Foundation for transfer instructions by calling (410) 810-5660.

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~ Chester River Health Foundation