Savvy Senior: December 12, 2019

Dear Savvy Senior,

How do I go about appealing Medicare when they won’t pay for something that they covered in the past?

Rejected Rhonda

Dear Rhonda,

If you disagree with a coverage or payment decision made by Medicare, you can appeal, and you’ll be happy to know that around half of all appeals are successful, so it’s definitely worth your time.

But before going that route, talk with the doctor, hospital and Medicare to see if you can spot the problem and resubmit the claim. Some denials are caused by simple billing code errors by the doctor’s office or hospital. If, however, that doesn’t fix...