By: Quiver LegislationRadar
Posted: an hour ago / June 4, 2026 3:47 p.m. UTC
We have received text from S. 4641: Improving Access to Medicare Coverage Act of 2026. This bill was received on 2026-05-21, and currently has 2 cosponsors.
Here is a short summary of the bill:
This bill, known as the Improving Access to Medicare Coverage Act of 2026, aims to change how Medicare counts certain hospital stays for patients seeking coverage for skilled nursing care. Here’s a breakdown of its key components:
Purpose of the Bill
The main objective is to allow patients who receive outpatient observation services in a hospital to have those days counted as if they were inpatient days. This change is important because Medicare requires a minimum of three inpatient days in a hospital before it will cover skilled nursing facility services. By counting outpatient observation days towards this requirement, more patients may qualify for Medicare coverage for subsequent skilled nursing care.
Details of the Amendment
Specifically, the bill amends Section 1861(i) of the Social Security Act. The amendment states the following:
- If an individual is receiving outpatient observation services, they will be treated as an inpatient for the duration of those services.
- The end of the outpatient observation period will be considered the hospital discharge date unless the patient is admitted as an inpatient afterward.
Effective Date
The changes proposed by this bill would apply to outpatient observation services starting January 1, 2026. For patients who have already completed a period of extended care services before this date, the bill allows for these changes to be considered if an administrative appeal was made regarding their services within 90 days of the bill’s enactment.
Implementation
The Secretary of Health and Human Services has the authority to implement these amendments through various means, such as interim final regulations or program instructions. This enables a more immediate application of the changes rather than waiting for the traditional rule-making process.
Summary
In summary, this bill seeks to improve access to skilled nursing facility services for Medicare patients by modifying how certain hospital observation days are counted, potentially allowing more individuals to qualify for necessary care.
Relevant Companies
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HCA Healthcare (HCA)
– As a large health system with many hospitals, this company could see increased demand for skilled nursing services due to the expanded Medicare coverage.
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UnitedHealth Group (UNH)
– As a major health insurance provider, UnitedHealth may need to adjust its policies and reimbursements in response to the changes in Medicare coverage.
Senator Susan M. Collins Bill Proposals
Here are some bills which have recently been proposed by Senator Susan M. Collins:
- S.4641: Improving Access to Medicare Coverage Act of 2026
- S.4292: Improving Retirement Security for Family Caregivers Act of 2026
- S.4291: Catching Up Family Caregivers Act of 2026
- S.4172: AFTER Act of 2026
- S.4051: National Fallen Firefighters Memorial Coin Act
- S.3934: Medical Nutrition Therapy Act of 2026
You can track bills proposed by Senator Susan M. Collins on Quiver Quantitative’s politician page for Collins.
Senator Susan M. Collins Net Worth
Quiver Quantitative estimates that Senator Susan M. Collins is worth $6.9M, as of June 4th, 2026. This is the 142nd highest net worth in Congress, per our live estimates.
Collins has approximately $4.1M invested in publicly traded assets which Quiver is able to track live.
You can track Senator Susan M. Collins’s net worth on Quiver Quantitative’s politician page for Collins.
Senator Susan M. Collins Stock Trading
We have data on up to $116.1M of trades from Senator Susan M. Collins, which we parsed from STOCK Act filings. Some of the largest trades include:
- A February 20th, 2015 purchase of up to $50M of $MMM. The stock has risen 7.88% since then.
- A May 17th, 2019 sale of up to $100K of $RHT. The stock has risen 1.19% since then.
- A December 16th, 2020 sale of up to $100K of $DNKN.
- A January 6th, 2022 purchase of up to $50K of $NVDA. The stock has risen 662.12% since then.
- A July 14th, 2016 sale of up to $50K of $HSY. The stock has risen 69.49% since then.
You can track Senator Susan M. Collins’s stock trading on Quiver Quantitative’s politician page for Collins.
2026 Maine US Senate Election
There has been approximately $46,348,161 of spending in Maine US Senate elections over the last two years, per our estimates.
Approximately $5,747,759 of this has been from outside spending by PACs and Super PACs. Some of the groups who are spending money in this race include:
The rating for this race is currently “Toss Up”.
You can track this election on our matchup page for the 2026 Maine US Senate election.
This article is not financial advice. See Quiver Quantitative’s disclaimers for more information.
