Forbes contributors publish independent expert analyses and insights. Diane Omdahl is a Medicare expert who keeps her readers in the know. There was a voicemail waiting for me on Monday morning from ...

US House lawmakers have reintroduced a bill that would apply hospital ‘observation status’ designation toward Medicare’s three-day qualifying hospital stay requirement. If the legislation passes, more ...

If you experienced a recent surge of denials for observation visits, a payer error could be at fault. Four Medicare administrative contractors (MAC) have announced ...

Observation rates for MA beneficiaries in 2024 remain elevated despite a federal regulation that went into effect in January requiring MA plans to cover the same services as traditional Medicare ...

Medicare patients initially admitted to hospitals as inpatients but later reclassified as outpatients under observation would finally have a process to appeal those decisions, thanks to a long-awaited ...

Thank goodness for Medicare (and supplements). The program, though costly to the federal government, has provided peace of mind about health care to millions of seniors. But there are traps in the ...

I have Original Medicare with a Supplement and in October, I was taken by ambulance to the emergency room for heart issues. I was surprised when I signed a hospital form stating that I was “under ...

Medicare's three-day hospital admission rule has frustrated seniors who don't qualify for nursing home coverage because they were in the hospital under observation care rather than being admitted. The ...

Charging people with high income more for Medicare makes such wonderful good sense that it seems almost impossible that Congress would ever consider the idea seriously. But put observation- prompted ...