Hospice News

JUNE 14, 2023

A growing number of patients with various dementia-related conditions will need end-of-life care in coming years. Hospices preparing for rising demand are facing compliance challenges, as these patients often require longer hospice stays. Patients with Alzheimer’s and other neurological degenerative disorders have health trajectories that are difficult to project, especially as they approach the end of life, according to Dr.

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GeriPal

NOVEMBER 9, 2023

Summary Transcript Summary Coaching is in. During the later stages of the pandemic, it seemed every other person, and particularly the junior faculty in our Division, were either being coached, in training to coach, or coaching others. When I was a junior faculty, coaching wasn’t a thing. Sure, Atul Gawande wrote about coaching in surgery – having someone observe you and coach you on your technical skills- but that’s a far cry from the coaching programs focused on empowerment that are e

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HopeHealth

DECEMBER 8, 2023

With the help of two professional actors, kids and teens at Camp BraveHeart tapped into the power of theater to navigate grief. The post How a theater workshop helps kids and teens navigate grief appeared first on HopeHealth.

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Sustainable Caregiving

SEPTEMBER 23, 2023

A sign of caregiver stress is not being able to escape the worries. Worries flow through our caregiver river, creating unexpected waterfalls and intense rapids that sweep us away. Caregiving worries keep us up at night, disrupt our day, and wreak havoc with our well-being. The 12th Sustainable Caregiving Strategy that supports caregiver self-care is … Caregiver Self-Care: How to Release Worries and Stress Less Read More » The post Caregiver Self-Care: How to Release Worries and Stress Less

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Hospice News

APRIL 5, 2023

The U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) will allow hospice patients to receive concurrent care through the Medicare Advantage hospice carve-in, and will permit health plans to further restrict utilization of out-of-network providers. Originally slated to complete in 2024, CMS recently extended the carve-in, formally known as the hospice component of the value-based insurance design model (VBID).

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Hospice News

JULY 3, 2023

Sens. Jacky Rosen (D-Nev.) and Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) recently re-introduced legislation designed to expand the palliative care workforce. The two lawmakers, along with others, also brought forth a second bill designed to ensure that hospice patients who need blood transfusions can receive them. The bipartisan-supported Provider Training in Palliative Care Act aims to increase the number of clinicians trained in palliative care as long-standing labor shortages continue to hinder access.

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Hospice News

MARCH 22, 2023

Despite years of scrutiny over the duration of hospice care, new data show that longer stays reduce health care costs in the last year of life by as much as 11%. All told, hospice care — regardless of length of stay — saves Medicare approximately $3.5 billion for patients in their last year of life, a 3.1% reduction. But those with stays of six months or more yielded the highest percentage of savings.

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Hospice News

MARCH 3, 2023

The families of patients who received care from nonprofit hospices give their providers higher marks on quality than those who went with for-profits, a RAND Corp. study has found. RAND researchers analyzed Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (CAHPS) Survey data from 653,208 caregivers whose family members received care from 3,107 hospices between April 2017 and March 2019.

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Hospice News

FEBRUARY 2, 2023

Given the critical role of family caregivers in home-based care, hospices have a vested interest in expanding their access to support. Families caring for seriously ill loved ones face systemic barriers that could threaten patients’ ability to receive care at home, including at the end of life. If a family can’t withstand these burdens, the patient may have to receive care in a facility to ensure their needs are met.

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Hospice News

APRIL 12, 2023

A majority of people in the United States know the types of end-of-life care they wish to receive, but only 22% have documented their wishes. Significant variations in advance care planning utilization also exist among racial and ethnic groups. About 25% of those who have documented their wishes are white. African Americans represented 22%, Hispanics 21% and Asians 7%.

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Hospice News

MAY 26, 2023

Three important considerations can help hospices recruit and retain social workers — a respectful workplace culture, reasonable workloads and continuing education opportunities. Workforce shortages remain the industry’s most damaging headwind, and that includes social workers. During the pandemic, those professionals have left the health care field in record numbers.

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Hospice News

DECEMBER 6, 2023

The palliative care space is at an inflection point at which unprecedented awareness and demand are fueling growth that could be hampered by limited reimbursement and staffing shortages. Palliative Care News spoke with a group of industry leaders about the most impactful forces that will shape the space in the coming year. Some of the common themes include the growth potential of these services, the need to adapt to changing payment models and the persistence of headwinds like the workforce issu

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Hospice News

DECEMBER 12, 2023

Program integrity issues that have heated up in the hospice space during the past five years reached a boiling point in 2023. Hospice providers have seen an array of increased regulatory oversight in 2023. That momentum has been fueled by two main concerns among regulators — risks of patient safety and evidence of malfeasance in the space. Hospice News sat down with providers, advocacy groups, legal experts and other stakeholders to uncover the most significant hospice regulatory trends from thi

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Hospice News

OCTOBER 30, 2023

A rising number of hospices have undergone name changes in recent years, prompting many to consider the elements of an effective rebranding strategy. As hospices nationwide develop new services to engage patients further upstream, some are rebranding to reflect their expanded scope and to avoid the word “hospice” in their company names, hoping to ameliorate patients’ anxiety about end-of-life care.

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Hospice News

JANUARY 20, 2023

More providers are investing in virtual reality (VR) programs as a growing body of research shows that it can ease pain symptoms and improve outcomes for palliative care patients. Virtual reality technology can reduce the use of high-cost pain therapy services and medications, according to Dr. Joseph Shega, executive vice president and chief medical officer of VITAS Healthcare, a subsidiary of Chemed Corp (NYSE: CHE).

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Hospice News

JUNE 28, 2023

When deployed at scale, palliative care can help achieve many of the health care systems current goals, including reduced costs, improved patient satisfaction and quality of life. Despite this potential, existing programs hit barriers created by misconceptions about palliative care among referring physicians, as well as health equity concerns, among others, according to an analysts of four payment model demonstrations carried out by the Center for Medicare & Medicaid Innovation.

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Hospice News

JUNE 26, 2023

Hospice providers are growing increasingly concerned about how state laws related to transgender rights may impede access to their services among LGBTQ+ communities. A rash of states have recently passed legislation to ban the delivery of gender-affirming health care, including Idaho, Indiana, Mississippi and Tennessee, among others. What’s happening in these states has caused mounting concern around access to quality hospice care for LGBTQ+ individuals, according to Kimberly Acquaviva, social w

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Hospice News

NOVEMBER 1, 2023

The U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has finalized its 2024 home health rule, including the implementation of a hospice Special Focus Program (SFP). The rule also finalizes the proposed “36-month”rule for hospice providers. The requirement mirrors a regulation that has existed for several years for home health agencies. The final rule forbids any change in majority ownership during the 36 months after initial Medicare enrollment, including acquisitions, stock transactions

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Healthcare communication has evolved from handwritten notes and paper charts to digital tools like EHRs, telemedicine, and AI-powered platforms. This blog explores how these advancements improve patient outcomes, streamline care delivery, and enhance provider collaboration. Learn about the role of mobile health (mHealth) apps, secure messaging, and social media in bridging communication gaps.

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Hospice News

MARCH 23, 2023

The U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) is extending the value-based insurance design demonstration for calendar years 2025 to 2030, including the hospice component. The hospice component of VBID, also called the MA carve-in, launched in 2021 and was originally slated to complete after four years. Each year, elements of the program have gone through planned changes, and that will continue through the extension.

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Hospice News

SEPTEMBER 11, 2023

People living with a neurological illness often face a long and painful road. Many neurological illnesses, such as dementia, Parkinson’s and Huntington’s, are progressive illnesses that come with a number of additional symptoms, from pain to depression. In recent years, more neurologists are realizing the need for specialized palliative care for this population.

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Hospice News

SEPTEMBER 18, 2023

Hospices competing for sparse staffing resources are increasingly recognizing the retention value of including grief care support in their benefits packages. Having bereavement services built into employee benefits packages has a two-pronged impact on hospice worker retention and recruitment, according to Betterleave CEO Cara McCarty Abbott. Employees that have access to grief support services are more likely to remain at a hospice organization for longer periods of time, as well as refer their

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Hospice News

NOVEMBER 10, 2023

The four largest hospice industry organizations are urging congressional lawmakers to mandate changes to the Special Focus Program (SFP) currently set to begin in 2024. The U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) last week issued its 2024 home health payment rule , which contained several hospice provisions. Among them was the Jan. 1 implementation date for the SFP.

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Hospice News

SEPTEMBER 14, 2023

AccentCare CEO Steve Rodgers is stepping down, with Laura Tortorella, COO of Steward Health, lined up to succeed him. Rodgers became AccentCare’s top executive in 2012 after more than three years as the CEO of OptumHealth Collaborative Care. Optum is now a subsidiary of UnitedHealth Group (NYSE:UNH). A major achievement during Rodgers’ tenure at the Dallas-based hospice, home health and palliative care provider was the company’s 2020 merger with Illinois-based Seasons Hospice & Palliative.

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Hospice News

NOVEMBER 10, 2023

Texas-based Choice Health at Home LLC has inked a deal to acquire Lumicare Hospice, growing its presence in two current markets while establishing services in a new state. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. Lumicare Hospice has locations in Texas and Arizona, two states in Choice’s existing service region. The hospice also has operations in Colorado – a new state in Choice’s geographic pipeline.

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Hospice News

DECEMBER 15, 2023

Palliative care providers have opportunities to bridge gaps of unmet needs among patients who have serious mental illnesses (SMIs) and their families. People with SMIs navigate a complicated mental health care system that can become even more challenging when they have a serious or chronic physical illness. Breakdowns in a fragmented health system have frayed lines of communication and collaboration among providers, representing a big hurdle for patient access and quality.

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Hospice News

DECEMBER 15, 2023

The worst of the staffing challenges is far from over for embattled hospice providers seeking fruitful recruitment and retention strategies in 2024. Operators will continue to reckon with clinical capacity strains next year as hospices contend with rising demand from a swelling aging population, according to Nick Westfall, CEO of VITAS Healthcare, a subsidiary of Chemed Corp.

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Hospice News

DECEMBER 13, 2023

As Contessa Health pioneers a growing value-based palliative care-at-home program, they’ve encountered some learning curves when it comes to operating within a new payment system. Contessa is a subsidiary of Amedisys (NASDAQ: AMED), which the home health and hospice provider acquired in 2021 for $250 million. Contessa’s specialty is high-acuity care in the home, including hospital-at-home and skilled nursing facility-at-home programs.

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Hospice News

NOVEMBER 8, 2023

The U.S. Senate Finance Committee is holding a markup meeting today on a bill that would, among other provisions, reallocate close to $1 billion hospice dollars to other programs. When it comes to legislation, a few words can make a big difference. A couple of sentences in a 120-page set of amendments to the Social Security Act would make adjustments to the hospice payment cap for 2033 that would free up $927 million.

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Hospice News

OCTOBER 31, 2023

Psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy (PAP) in bereavement support may have benefits for families coping with the loss of a loved one. However, gauging the potential impacts of psychedelic utilization among grieving individuals requires careful consideration when assessing quality outcomes, according to Ryan Moss, chief science officer at Filament Health Corp.

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Hospice News

DECEMBER 8, 2023

A New Jersey state bill recently passed that establishes community-based palliative care benefits under Medicaid. The new legislation includes coverage for specialized medical care, emotional and spiritual support, as well as pain and symptom relief for Medicaid beneficiaries with advanced illnesses, including both adult and pediatric populations. The state’s Department of Human Services (DHS) has two years to implement the changes.

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