Hospice News

JUNE 29, 2022

Congressional legislators are casting doubts on regulatory oversight of Medicare Advantage plans over concerns about spending, claims denials, and end-of-life care. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) or any Medicare Advantage plans spoke at this hearing. No representatives from the U.S.

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Hospice News

SEPTEMBER 20, 2022

and Susan Collins (R-Maine) introduced the Improving Access to Advance Care Planning Act to the Senate designed to promote greater access to those services among Medicare beneficiaries. The goal of the bill is to think about barriers to advance care planning utilization. Warner (D-Va.) House of Representatives by Rep.

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Hospice News

JULY 12, 2024

The forthcoming Hospice Care Accountability, Reform and Enforcement (Hospice CARE) Act from U.S. Blumenauer announced the bill in June at the Hospice News Elevate conference in Washington D.C. Hospice News / Merz Photography Hospice News / Merz Photography Rep. Hospice News photo by Merz Photography.

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Hospice News

OCTOBER 9, 2023

Calls have grown louder for an overhauled design of the Medicare Hospice Benefit, but the path towards change is riddled with contrasting views over regulation, policy and payment structures. One part of the issue is that hospice reimbursement has not kept pace with evolving patient needs, Grant said.

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Hospice News

JULY 13, 2023

This is the first of a two-part service that will detail key findings from recent research on hospice care, featuring numbers that could influence they ways hospices communicate and operate. Hospices’ cost-savings potential A study published in March revealed that hospice saved Medicare roughly $3.5

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Hospice News

JULY 26, 2024

The most recent iteration of Hospice Care Accountability, Reform and Enforcement (Hospice CARE) Act, currently in a discussion draft phase, could have some unintended consequences in the future of end-of-life care delivery. Developed by U.S.

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Hospice News

MARCH 15, 2024

Documentation errors and a fragmented health system pose the greatest risks for adverse drug events among hospices. Identification of risk factors for ADRs may prevent occurrences in the complex palliative care patient.” Hospice providers have been closely evaluating how they prescribe and deprescribe medications for patients.

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Hospice News

JULY 31, 2023

Longer stays yield greater savings Regulators have fixed their gaze on longer hospice stays as signals of potential fraud, waste and abuse. Hospice care saves Medicare roughly $3.5 The longer the hospice stay, the more potential savings.” That’s a huge difference and a huge value to Medicare,” Munevar said.

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Hospice News

FEBRUARY 9, 2023

Patients with dementia are less likely to receive hospice in their last month of life than those who have other diagnoses, 12.5% The Medicare Hospice Benefit initially was designed around the needs of cancer patients, but now the number of patients with other diagnoses is growing — some with less predictable disease patterns.

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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.

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Hospice News

AUGUST 17, 2023

As Jimmy Carter marks his sixth month in hospice care, the provider community is raising awareness by saluting the former president. The National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization (NHPCO) convened a group of hospice leaders at Times Square in New York City to commemorate Carter’s hospice experience.

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Hospice News

JUNE 28, 2024

The AIDS epidemic coincided with the birth of the hospice movement roughly four decades ago, carrying groundbreaking impacts on end-of-life care delivery for LGBTQ+ communities and beyond. In 1983, the Medicare Hospice Benefit was established. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

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Hospice News

JANUARY 23, 2025

While some innovative technology trends have aided in improved rural hospice care delivery, regulatory and reimbursement challenges remain a pain point for providers trying to burgeon access among hard to reach, underserved communities, Graham told Hospice News. How does Stillwater Hospice approach growth?

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Hospice News

MARCH 5, 2025

Among the significant changes that the legislation proposed was having newly licensed hospice programs in Nevada undergo enhanced regulatory oversight for the first two years of operations. Goals of the legislation include an aim to decrease fraud and improve hospice care statewide, according to Edgeworth.

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Hospice News

JANUARY 8, 2025

Six nonprofit hospice providers recently joined forces to form the Hawaii Palliative and Hospice Care Collaborative. The initiative is an effort to ensure sustainable access amid rising demand for end-of-life and serious illness care. Francis Healthcare System of Hawaiis hospice program.

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Hospice News

JANUARY 12, 2024

The Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC) has voted to recommend a freeze on hospice payment increases starting in 2025. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). For this year, CMS increased the hospice base rate by 3.1%. set in 2023.

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Hospice News

OCTOBER 24, 2024

But concerns have mounted around sustainable growth strategies that will keep pace with rising demand amid myriad challenges in end-of-life care delivery. Hospice News spoke with c-suite executives who have recently stepped into their roles to learn more about what led them to the space and their top priorities.

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Hospice News

MARCH 10, 2025

Calvary Hospitals newly appointed president Michael Fosina is embarking on a deeper journey to improve quality and access to hospice care amid rising demand. Research and workforce growth will play large roles in the future of palliative and end-of-life care delivery, according to Fosina.

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Hospice News

OCTOBER 1, 2024

The data come at a time when hospices are striving to better understand how to improve those groups’ end-of-life trajectories. Technology utilization has gained momentum in health care, including in hospice care delivery. Coupled with the telehealth disparities are inequities pertaining to hospice care.

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Hospice News

MARCH 29, 2024

The 2025 proposed hospice rule is raising some questions along with payment rates. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) proposed a 2.6% increase in hospice per diems for 2025. We know that hospice care has demonstrated $3.5 Hospice care saves Medicare roughly $3.5

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Hospice News

JUNE 13, 2024

Earl Blumenauer (D-Oregon) is drafting a landmark bill that, if enacted, would represent the most significant reforms to date for hospice payment and oversight. Blumenauer announced the bill, the Hospice Care Accountability, Reform, and Enforcement (Hospice CARE) Act, on Thursday at the Hospice News Elevate conference in Washington D.C.

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Hospice News

JULY 23, 2024

The Medicare Hospice Benefit is ripe for change nearly four decades after its establishment, but moving the needle will include a heavy lift around evolving regulations. This is according to Bill Dombi, president of the National Association for Home Care & Hospice (NAHC). But hospice has moved into a new era.

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Hospice News

SEPTEMBER 26, 2024

A mounting concern is that fraudsters stepping into the hospice industry have been implementing marketing and outreach practices that at times mirror strategies utilized by quality providers, according to Jeanne Chirico, president and CEO of the Hospice & Palliative Care Association of New York State (HPCANYS).

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Hospice News

FEBRUARY 21, 2025

Individuals with Alzheimers and dementia-related conditions could benefit from stronger caregiver programs upstream of end-of-life care. This is according to recent research findings, which could help inform approaches to care under the new Guiding an Improved Dementia Experience (GUIDE) payment model. Fueled by a $2.3

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Hospice News

OCTOBER 30, 2023

Several of these bills have rolled out this year from the Senate Comprehensive Care Caucus , which Rosen co-founded, including Expanding Access to Palliative Care Act , the Provider Training in Palliative Care Act and Improving Access to Transfusion Care for Hospice Patients Act. Earl Blumenhauer (D-Ore.)

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Hospice News

SEPTEMBER 30, 2022

New payment models are also providing an impetus to embrace hospice care, according to BofA researchers. This includes gradual shifts towards value-based reimbursement and a drive to reduce facility-based care and associated costs. We’re closely watching what happens with value-based pilots in hospice,” said Tanquilut. “I

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Hospice News

MARCH 4, 2025

Scott Herman said in a statement shared with Hospice News. Bill is an icon in the industry and a staunch Medicare beneficiary advocate, always putting patients first and fighting for their rights and benefits. Dombi has litigated home health care policy matters since 1976.

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Hospice News

APRIL 29, 2022

The Medicare Advantage hospice carve-in has been the focus of much attention among providers, and many are watching closely for the demonstration’s outcomes. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) launched the MCCM in 2016 to explore the idea of allowing hospice patients to receive concurrent curative care.

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Hospice News

DECEMBER 3, 2024

NuHealth is partnering with Hospice of New York to offer inpatient end-of-life care to its patients. Holly Patterson Extended Care Facility. NuHealth was formally known as Nassau Health Care Corp. “By Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS).

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Hospice News

MARCH 15, 2024

The Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC) has recommended to Congress a freeze on hospice payment increases starting in 2025. In its annual report to Congress, MedPAC urged policymakers to eliminate hospice base-rate increases for 2025. The 2021 aggregated Medicare hospice margin was 13.3%, according to MedPAC.

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Hospice News

JULY 10, 2024

The JV, branded as Adena Home Health and Hospice, will launch next month, providing care to seriously and terminally ill patients in south central and southern Ohio. This is an exciting and significant step forward in our home health and hospice care delivery,” said Adena Chief Clinical Officer Dr. Shaheed Koury, in a statement.

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Hospice News

MAY 17, 2024

The court also ordered Akula to repay $42 million in fraudulent Medicare billing claims made between January 2013 and December 2019, which totaled roughly $84 million during that six-year span. The charges included fraudulent claims for physician services and home visits, as well as manipulation of Medicare billing codes.

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Hospice News

JULY 12, 2023

It could also help improve utilization of serious illness and end-of-life care. Patients with chronic kidney disease can often receive fragmented care and expensive treatments. They also receive limited to no education about their health trajectories, or serious illness and end-of-life care options.

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Hospice News

JANUARY 17, 2025

Some hospices have delved deeper into service diversification to improve timely access and expand their patient reach, while others remain focused on end-of-life care delivery. Finding innovative, creative ways to deliver quality services is a significant part of hospice care delivery, he stated.

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Hospice News

NOVEMBER 27, 2024

Hospices’ public outreach efforts have evolved in recent years, with providers finding new strategies to dispel myths that have long impeded access to care. Nearly half, or 49.1%, of all Medicare decedents utilized hospice services in 2022, reported the National Alliance for Care at Home.

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Hospice News

JULY 16, 2024

The Pennsylvania state Senate has approved a bill proposing to expand staffing requirements around death proclamations to include a wider breadth of hospice clinicians. If enacted, the legislation would allow licensed practical nurses (LPNs) providing hospice care to make death pronouncements.

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Hospice News

MARCH 27, 2024

Operators need to be prepared to deliver care and support their communities’ responses to catastrophic events. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) expanded a Condition of Participation pertaining to disaster preparedness planning. Last year, The Joint Commission implemented similar requirements for hospices.

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