Webinar: Medicare Observation Status & Improvement Standard

Mark your calendars. The National Consumer Voice for Quality Long-Term Care is holding a webinar on March 13, 2014 from 3-4:30 p.m., est. Toby Edelman, Senior Policy Attorney for the Center for Medicare Advocacy (CMA), is the speaker for this webinar, Medicare Observation Status and Improvement Standard in Skilled Nursing Facilities: What Advocates and Consumers Need to Know. The webinar will cover the following:

After briefly reviewing requirements for Medicare coverage of a stay in a skilled nursing facility, this webinar will discuss in depth how to overcome two obstacles to coverage – observation status and the myth of medical improvement.  Observation status refers to the label of “outpatient” that hospitals assign to patients who are hospitalized, often for multiple days, depriving them of the three-day inpatient status that is necessary for Medicare coverage in a SNF.  The settlement in the Vermont lawsuit Jimmo confirms that Medicare pays for “maintenance” nursing and therapy for nursing home residents, dispelling the myth that Medicare pays for care only when a resident will “improve.”  Learn how to advocate effectively for Medicare beneficiaries, and where advocates and consumers can get help.

The cost for the webinar is $50.  Unable to attend? You can obtain a subsequent podcast (mp3) for $15.00. To register or for more information, click here.