Why Continue Observation Status?
December 14, 2015 at 7:35 pm meshepard Leave a comment
The December 2, 2015 Wall Street Journal story “Medicare Rules Reshape Hospital Admissions” described how hospital stays classified under “observation status” can lead to big bills for patients without their knowledge.
The Center for Medicare Advocacy has worked for many years to eliminate, or at least reduce, the harm that observation status causes people who rely on Medicare. We have developed self-help materials,http://www.medicareadvocacy.org/self-help-packet-for-medicare-observation-status/, assisted beneficiaries and families, brought together a coalition of national organizations to support federal legislation that would fix the problem, and filed lawsuits.
“Outpatient” hospital observation status is limiting access to necessary nursing home care, skewing public health data regarding hospital admissions and readmissions, increasing Part B costs and cost-sharing, and creating lengthy delays in the Medicare appeals system. With all this harm, one must ask: Why does the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services insist on continuing this dreadful policy?
Entry filed under: Observation, Uncategorized.
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