This site uses cookies to improve your experience. To help us insure we adhere to various privacy regulations, please select your country/region of residence. If you do not select a country, we will assume you are from the United States. Select your Cookie Settings or view our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.
Cookie Settings
Cookies and similar technologies are used on this website for proper function of the website, for tracking performance analytics and for marketing purposes. We and some of our third-party providers may use cookie data for various purposes. Please review the cookie settings below and choose your preference.
Used for the proper function of the website
Used for monitoring website traffic and interactions
Cookie Settings
Cookies and similar technologies are used on this website for proper function of the website, for tracking performance analytics and for marketing purposes. We and some of our third-party providers may use cookie data for various purposes. Please review the cookie settings below and choose your preference.
Strictly Necessary: Used for the proper function of the website
Performance/Analytics: Used for monitoring website traffic and interactions
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) recently elaborated on its plans to expand public education campaigns designed to help protect hospice beneficiaries from fraudulent actors in the space. Program integrity concerns have heated up in the hospice industry.
Mahogany Home Health and Hospice recently launched services in southwestern Ohio. The new hospice startup is the first Black-owned hospice and home health organization statewide with a drive to improve utilization among underserved populations. Couzens has also held hospice chaplain roles at St.
Hospice providers, along with the rest of health care, are increasingly relying on technology for clinical and business operations, with artificial intelligence among the most common investments. However, careful implementation is necessary to effectively use these systems.
In April, VITAS acquired Covenant Health and Community Services’ hospice operations as well as one assisted living facility in an $85 million deal. First is we like CON states or states where there are restrictions on barriers of entry,” Witzeman said during a presentation at the UBS Healthcare Conference. NYSE: CHE).
Rising demand for end-of-life care is pushing hospice growth opportunities to the forefront in value-based reimbursement. More payers in this arena are increasingly recognizing the depth of potential beneficial outcomes when it comes to collaborative hospice partnerships. National hospice utilization rates reached 49.1%
Documentation errors and a fragmented health system pose the greatest risks for adverse drug events among hospices. McPherson also serves on the board of the American Academy of Hospice and Palliative Medicine (AAHPM). They also need to know which side effects are more concerning and should prompt a call to the hospice.”
Hospice providers and stakeholders are carefully examining the proposed changes included in the recently introduced HospiceCare Accountability, Reform, and Enforcement (HospiceCARE) Act as the bill begins its journey through the legislative process. this summer. “It
Increased technology utilization in end-of-life care has come with innovative care delivery opportunities alongside cybersecurity risks. Technology is gaining momentum in end-of-life care delivery, with hospices carefully navigating the opportunities and risks, according to Jody Rudman, partner at the law firm Husch Blackwell. “AI
The Medicare Hospice Benefit could use an “upgrade” to ensure greater flexibility that may be necessary to fully support patients’ needs. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) should consider is retiring the six-month terminal prognosis requirement and allowing for some concurrent care, Wallace and Wladkowski indicated.
Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston applied an AI algorithm to facilitate timely transitions to hospice for patients presenting in the emergency department. For most of these patients, hospicecare began within one to two days of prognosis.
Traditions Health Names SVP of Hospice Operations Traditions Health has appointed Tom Moreland as its new senior vice president of hospice operations. Franklin, Tennessee-headquartered Traditions provides hospice, home health and palliative care as well as consulting services across 18 states.
When your loved one is nearing the end of life, here are tips for what to say and do – and how to simply be present with them. The post How to be present with a loved one at the end of life appeared first on HopeHealth.
Without assistance or relief, these difficulties can impede access to hospice. Research has shown that patients who are faced with end-of-life decisions may be less likely to choose hospice unless they have a network of friends or family who can serve as home caregivers. This only worsened during COVID-19.
Hospicecare does not occur in a vacuum, and many operators find themselves building partnerships with other community organizations to better serve patients and support their staff. Some also partner with medical and nursing schools to ensure students in health care fields gain exposure to hospice and palliative care principles. “It
Given the significance of family caregivers in hospicecare, providers can benefit from having tools to assess whether or not they are experiencing burnout. We as palliative care clinicians meet caregivers who may be particularly vulnerable given the circumstances under which they find themselves.”
Hospices are increasingly eying palliative care as a promising growth opportunity, prioritizing expansion in that field over other health care service lines. Survey respondents included nearly 330 hospice and palliative care industry professionals, including owners, executive leaders and managers, among others.
Though evidence shows that longer hospice stays reduce costs, providers are still walking a regulatory tightrope. On one hand, longer hospice stays can lead to improved patient and family satisfaction and greater cost saving opportunities. Young told Hospice News. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) and the U.S.
Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) is insufficient to support hospice patients’ care needs, a major industry group said. CMS earlier this month released its 2024 hospice proposed rule , which included the 2.8% proposed rate increase for hospices is not enough to support the carehospices provide.
Careful management of the hospice aggregate cap is key to providers’ sustainability as regulatory scrutiny continues to heat up. The cap is designed to prevent overuse of hospice, put controls on Medicare spending and foster greater access to care among patients. This corresponds with quality of care considerations.
As the hospice landscape shifts and hospicecare is delivered more widely, another care type has made entry into the conversation: palliative care. The shift does present challenges, however. We knew that what they had at their disposal from a hospice perspective wasn’t enough for palliative care.
Hospice programs in central New York remain open, despite local legislators previously indicating staffing-related closures. In 2022, legislators in Oswego County in New York state voted to shutter its hospice services within the year. However, The Caring Coalition of Central New York, d.b.a.
Hospices, in aggregate, are showing improvement on the quality measure for visits in the last days of life. In Calendar Year 2021, the share of hospicecare days with nurse visits in the last seven days of life rose to 63%, up from 62% year over year, according to the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization (NHPCO).
Illinois-headquartered Unity Hospice & Palliative Care has expanded to Houston, Texas, following its acquisition of an existing license in that market. Unity is a family-owned provider established in 1992 that since then has cared for more than 30,000 patients, the company reported. currently, projections by the U.S.
Program integrity and an onslaught of audits are top of mind for many hospice providers in 2024. The organizations earlier this year presented their findings , published today, to members of Congress and the U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). The impetus for the audit was primarily related to billing errors.
NYSE: CHE), has opened its first hospice house in Orange County, California, currently the only such facility in that region. More patients elect hospice in California than in any other state. The company operates 50 hospice programs across 14 states and in the District of Columbia, with 27 inpatient hospice units nationwide.
Anti-kickback and health care fraud cases have recently cropped up in two southern states, with hospice personnel facing millions in fines and one owner facing imprisonment for their involvement. David Lovell, its founder and owner, launched the for-profit hospice in 2010, and the enterprise became Medicare-certified in 2012.
Arizona-based Stoneridge Hospice launched services in 2020 with an aim to address a swelling aging population’s growing need for end-of-life care. Stoneridge Hospice provides home-based hospice and also contracts with other providers to offer facility-based services. Stoneridge Hospice launched in 2020.
The foundation is an independent, nonprofit hospice and palliative care research and advocacy organization. The foundation aims to identify and address gaps in the health care continuum to help improve the quality of life for the seriously and terminally ill. The HAP Foundation has officially begun operations.
The four largest hospice industry organizations have been working to present a united front to address widespread program integrity issues. A large contingent of these companies were established with the purpose of selling the license at a profit, with little concern for patient care. This prompted the U.S.
A group of 17 Illinois health care organizations is collaborating to expand access to home-based primary care, including a number of hospice and palliative care providers. The providers are participating in the Illinois House Care Project, an initiative by the Home Centered Care Institute (HCCI).
Most hospices are sliding into 2023 between a rock and a hard place, beset by headwinds, labor shortages and questions with no easy answers. Government oversight of hospice providers will tighten during 2023. Hospices have faced ever-intensifying scrutiny from regulators in recent years. Be ready for regulation.
In 2022, the hospice community laid the groundwork for a transformational 2023. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) developed new approaches for enforcing hospice regulations that will become effective on Jan. These trends in value-based care have even influenced the M&A market.
Effective governance can be critical to a hospice’s performance and growth, and a number of providers have been working to optimize the engagement of their boards of directors or trustees. . It’s more forward facing than looking backwards,” Bill Musik, CEO of Integri3D, told Hospice News. “A Among these were North Hawaii Hospice.
If you were to write a book about hospice in 2023, what would you call it? To help answer that question, Hospice News asked the CEOs of eight providers how they would title a book about the state of the field today. Croix Hospice, AccentCare, Chapters Health System, Alivia Care, Enhabit, Inc., Heath Bartness, CEO, St.
Hospice of the Chesapeake Appoints New CMO Maryland-based Hospice of the Chesapeake recently named Dr. Marny Fetzer as its new chief medical officer. Fetzer is currently system medical director for palliative care and hospice services at Illinois-based Ascension Health.
Care coordination and quality data will be engines for hospice referral growth. Hospices saw census volumes drop during the COVID-19 public health emergency as facilities nationwide restricted access to patients amid mandated state closures. Quality is at the crux of every aspect of the care continuum, Luo stated.
The 2025 proposed hospice rule is raising some questions along with payment rates. increase in hospice per diems for 2025. The agency also proposed two new quality measures and 2025 implementation of the Hospice Outcome and Patient Evaluation (HOPE) assessment tool to replace the Hospice Item Set.
SCAN Health Plan is among the Medicare Advantage (MA) payers entering the hospice component of the value-based insurance design (VBID) payment demonstration in 2023. The four-year program — often called the Medicare Advantage hospice carve-in — launched Jan. Hospice VBID enters its third year in 2023.
Hospice program integrity has been in the spotlight for at least the past two years, often with high financial stakes for providers. Unified Program Integrity Contractor (UPIC) and Targeted Probe and Educate (TPE) audits are designed to key regulatory safeguards against bad actors in the hospice industry. Stakes around UPICs The U.S.
As regulators turn their eyes toward hospice program integrity, Community Healthcare of Texas CEO Viki Jingle has seen first-hand the “heartbreaking disservice” that families experience due to unethical practices. We do see a tremendous influx of for-profit, third-party investors coming into the hospice space here in Texas.
Researchers analyzed records for 43,200 veterans with prior hospitalization who had received primary care at a VA site between October 2016 and September 2019. They found a 95% increase in hospice or palliative utilization among veterans served by VA providers participating in the agency’s Social Work Patient Aligned Care Team (PACT).
As lawmakers wrestle with necessary improvements to hospice program integrity, they should seek input from the professionals who provide that care, Dr. Holly Yang, incoming board president of the American Academy of Hospice and Palliative Medicine (AAHPM) told Hospice News.
The Indiana-based palliative care provider Center for HospiceCare (CHC) is looking beyond its immediate community and has developed networks that impact palliative care on a global scale. hospice leaders. hospice leaders went on this trip, saw the need and felt like more could be done to help the situation.”
Case in point, New Jersey legislators are currently mulling a bill that would create a community-based palliative care benefit within the state’s Medicaid program. . Torrie Fields, strategy advisor, Coalition to Transform Advanced Care However, differences exist in how these programs are defined and structured.
We organize all of the trending information in your field so you don't have to. Join 5,000+ users and stay up to date on the latest articles your peers are reading.
You know about us, now we want to get to know you!
Let's personalize your content
Let's get even more personalized
We recognize your account from another site in our network, please click 'Send Email' below to continue with verifying your account and setting a password.
Let's personalize your content