We Need to End "Observation Status"

Excerpt from NSCLC: (click for entire article)

Last November, we joined with the Center for Medicare Advocacy in filing a class action lawsuit against the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services concerning what is often referred to as observation status. A recent study from Brown University published in Health Affairs proves that it is an increasingly common practice that deprives many older patients of their right to hospital coverage under Medicare Part A.

The plaintiffs in Bagnall v. Sebelius are Medicare beneficiaries who received hospital inpatient services, but were improperly classified as outpatients in observation status and, as a result, needed to absorb hospital costs that otherwise would have been paid under Medicare Part A. Stories from families and individuals affected by the practice show that it can cause severe financial problems.