Visit NBCNews.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy
Visit NBCNews.com for breaking news, world news, andnews about the economy
For financial reasons, hospitals around the country are increasingly classifying overnight hospital stays for people with Medicare—even stays that last more than three days—as outpatient visits. The problem is that unless the hospital treats you as a hospital inpatient, Medicare will not cover your skilled nursing facility care post-hospitalization. And, the hospital often has the discretion to classify even lengthy stays as Medicare outpatient hospital care.