Hospital “Observation Status” Medicare Bill Goes to President Obama for Signature

The legislation carrying the name Notice of Observation Treatment and Implication for Care Eligibility (NOTICE) Act, that has now passed both the House and Senate, goes to President Obama for signature. If signed by the president, it will still be another year before its official effective date.

Sadly, it doesn’t actually fix the problem for the patients with the fact that hospitals frequently attempt to hold patients on a fictional “observation only” status.  Money is  still the issue. Hospitals want to avoid harsh potential Medicare penalties associated with readmissions of “admitted” patients.  At the same time, the lack of “admitted status” reduces the ability of patients to seek Medicare coverage for rehabilitation care post-hospitalization.  But now the patients get better “notice” of their status — and the potential for it to affect Medicare coverage and therefor out-of-pocket expense for the patients.

ElderLawGuy Jeff Marshall has posted a good blog review of the new law, supplementing his earlier coverage of the problems.  See his Observation Status Bill Heads to President’s Desk