New bipartisan legislation offered by U.S. Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME) aims to reduce the medical costs for the skilled nursing care required by America’s senior citizens after hospitalization.
“When seniors require hospitalization, their focus should be on their health and getting well, not on how they were admitted,” Sen. Collins said on May 15. “Currently, many older Americans face severe financial consequences due to the distinction between an observation stay and inpatient admittance.”
The Improving Access to Medicare Coverage Act of 2024, S. 4137, which Sen. Collins cosponsored on April 17 with bill sponsor U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown (D-OH), would allow for the time patients spend in the hospital under “observation status” to count toward the requisite three-day hospital stay for coverage of skilled nursing care, according to a bill summary provided by the lawmakers.
“This bipartisan bill would deem time spent in observation status as inpatient care for the purpose of the Medicare three-day prior hospital stay requirement for skilled nursing care, which will help insulate older Americans from undue out-of-pocket costs and ensure that they get the care that they need,” said Sen. Collins.
If enacted, S. 4137 also would establish a 90-day appeal period for those who have a qualifying hospital stay and have been denied skilled nursing care after Jan. 1, 2024, the summary says.
The measure has garnered support from numerous groups, including the Maine Health Care Association, the American Health Care Association/National Center for Assisted Living, the Center for Medicare Advocacy, AARP, and the National Center for Assisted Living, among many others.