Anesthesiologist and intensivist Silvia Perez-Protto, M.D., is leading the charge to standardize advance care planning processes in her institution. At Cleveland Clinic, she is director of the Center for End of Life Care and a faculty member at the Center for Excellence in Healthcare Communication. The center’s objective is to standardize advance care planning and […]
The Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC) at its January meeting unanimously voted to recommend to Congress that no Medicare payment increases for hospices be implemented in Fiscal Year 2021, as well as a 20% reduction in the aggregate payment cap. These proposals are not a done deal. Congress would have to accept these recommendations before […]
Effective management and geographic location are two key factors that can determine whether a private equity firm will invest in a hospice. Private equity interest in the hospice market has been on the rise, driven by the fragmented nature of the industry, increased acceptance of palliative care services, the aging population, the changing regulatory landscape, […]
Pasadena, Md.-based Chesapeake Palliative Medicine has rebranded as Chesapeake Supportive Care to shed stigma that arise from misconceptions about hospice and palliative medicine. Chesapeake Supportive Care is affiliated with Hospice of the Chesapeake. Several hospices and palliative care providers nationwide have been rebranding in recent months, often due to the stigma or to reflect a […]
Michigan-based health care system Beaumont Health is resuming management of the pediatric hospice program that it sold to Alternate Health Solutions Network (AHSN) in 2018 for an undisclosed sum. Though, AHSN is unable to sustain the program in the long term, no gaps in care have occurred and none are expected. Beaumont sold the majority […]
Hospice, home health, and personal care provider Amedisys Inc. (NASDAQ: AMED) is poised for further growth in the hospice space during 2020 thanks to admissions growth, acquisitions and de novo activity. In the third quarter of 2019 Amedisys hospice segment revenue rose to $162 million, a 57% increase over Q3 2018. The segment’s EBITDA rose […]
Hospice providers are using new machine learning tools to identify patients in need of their services earlier in the course of their illnesses and to ensure that patients receive appropriate levels of home visits in their final days. While hospice utilization is rising, lengths of stay for many patients remains too short for them to […]
Accountable care organizations (ACOs) view prevention of hospitalization, readmissions and emergency department visits as top priorities, according to new research published in Health Affairs. Hospices marketing themselves to ACOs would do well to keep those metrics in mind when interfacing with those organizations. Close to 1,000 ACOs cover 44 million patients nationwide as of the […]
A pilot collaboration between Bristol Hospice Hawaii and Ohana Health Plan, Inc. to provide interdisciplinary palliative care to complex patients resulted in a 40% reduction in health care costs, as well as substantial reductions in avoidable hospitalizations and emergency room visits. Ohana is a component of WellCare Health Insurance of Arizona, Inc. The program focused […]
A rising number of Medicare Advantage plans are offering home-based palliative care as a supplemental benefit. This year, 61 plans offer a palliative care benefit compared to 15 during 2019, a new Duke University report indicates. Hospices provide about 50% of home-based palliative care in the United States according to the Center to Advance Palliative […]