Medicare patients considered hospital outpatients on Observation Status may be helped by a decision issued on January 22, 2015 by a federal appeals court. A three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit decided that … [Read more...] about Appeals Court Allows Hospital Patients in “Observation Status” to Continue Court Case
Observation Status
Observation Status: Hospitals May Begin Rebilling Medicare Patients Who Were Hospitalized After October 1, 2013
Medicare patients need to be aware that if they were hospitalized after October 1, 2013, hospitals may be contacting them about their bills.Final rules that were published in August 2013 and became effective October 1, 2013 created a new … [Read more...] about Observation Status: Hospitals May Begin Rebilling Medicare Patients Who Were Hospitalized After October 1, 2013
Observation Status: Mixed Messages from Federal Government as Beneficiaries Continue to be Hurt
The use of “Observation Status” – treating certain hospitalized Medicare patients as outpatients when their care is indistinguishable from that of formally admitted inpatients – continues to garner considerable public and … [Read more...] about Observation Status: Mixed Messages from Federal Government as Beneficiaries Continue to be Hurt
CMS has Authority Under Existing Law to Define Inpatient Care
Under a 2008 decision of the Second Circuit Court of Appeals, the Secretary of HHS has authority under the Medicare statute to include a hospital patient’s time in observation as part of inpatient time in the hospital for purposes of … [Read more...] about CMS has Authority Under Existing Law to Define Inpatient Care
Observation Status – Notice and Appeal
Connecticut Passes Observation Notice LawOn June 12, 2014, Connecticut Governor Dannel P. Malloy signed into law a requirement that, starting October 1, 2014, Connecticut hospitals give oral and written notice to patients placed on observation … [Read more...] about Observation Status – Notice and Appeal
Harm from Medicare’s Hospital Observation Status Debated In Congressional Hearing – Center for Medicare Advocacy Presents Beneficiary Perspective
May 21, 2014The May 20, 2014 hearing on "Current Hospital Issues in the Medicare Program," held by the Health Subcommittee of the House Committee on Ways and Means, was the first Congressional hearing to consider the impact of … [Read more...] about Harm from Medicare’s Hospital Observation Status Debated In Congressional Hearing – Center for Medicare Advocacy Presents Beneficiary Perspective
Senior Policy Attorney Toby S. Edelman Testifies about Observation Status before Congress
Center for Medicare Advocacy Senior Policy Attorney Toby S. Edelman will testify before the House Ways and Means Health Subcommittee on Tuesday, May 20, 2014 at 9:30 AM regarding current hospital issues in the Medicare program, specifically the … [Read more...] about Senior Policy Attorney Toby S. Edelman Testifies about Observation Status before Congress
Submitting Claims to Part D for Prescription Drugs Administered in the Hospital During an Observation Status Stay
The use of Medicare observation status in hospitals has increased dramatically over the past several years.[1] The most notable adverse consequence of Observation Status on beneficiaries is financial liability for any post-hospitalization care at a … [Read more...] about Submitting Claims to Part D for Prescription Drugs Administered in the Hospital During an Observation Status Stay
New Study: CMS’s New 2-Midnight Rule Increases Hospital’s Use of Observation Status
Final rules published in August 2013 by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) created time-based rules for determining inpatient status in an acute-care hospital.[1] Under the rules' two-midnight presumption, a physician … [Read more...] about New Study: CMS’s New 2-Midnight Rule Increases Hospital’s Use of Observation Status
Center and “Observation Status” on NBC Nightly News
As our client, Ms. Bricout states in this video, Observation Status is simply "illogical." But there is a sound, viable solution! Congressman Joe Courtney has a bill pending in Congress that would fix the observation status problem … [Read more...] about Center and “Observation Status” on NBC Nightly News