U.S. Senators Mark R. Warner (D-Va.) and Susan Collins (R-Maine) have introduced a bill designed to foster greater access to advance care planning (ACP) among Medicare beneficiaries. If enacted, the Improving Access to Advance Care Planning Act would permit social workers to conduct ACP services, remove co-pays and patient fees, and promote provider education about […]
Many hospices have relied heavily on travel nurse agencies to reinforce their clinical teams during the pandemic. Now, a pair of bills currently before Congress would require a federal study of those agencies’ impact on health care. The Travel Nursing Agency Transparency Study Act would instruct the U.S. Government Accountability Office (GAO) to study the […]
Stretching back more than a decade, a rising number of states have passed laws designed to raise awareness of hospice and palliative care, but to date, few if any have achieved measurable results. The reasons for this run the gamut. During the past two years, for instance, state governments and health care organizations have been […]
Proposed federal legislation could advance the development of an evidence-based definition of “high-quality” bereavement care. The language appears in the 2023 appropriations bill for the departments of Labor, Health & Human Services, Education, and related agencies. Considered “report language,” the bereavement portion of the bill is a recommendation to federal agencies to pursue its stated […]
Massachusetts legislators recently allocated more than $8.7 million in the state’s 2023 fiscal year budget to support pediatric palliative care access. The funding is intended to support expanded palliative care services for seriously and terminally ill children amid rising demand. Massachusetts State Sen. Sal DiDomenico has been a primary advocate of pediatric palliative care in […]
The U.S. House of Representatives has approved a bill that would extend telehealth waivers until the end of 2024, whether or not the COVID-19 public health emergency is extended. This includes the ability to re-certify patients for hospice through virtual visits. The bill, dubbed the Advancing Telehealth Beyond COVID-19 Act, cleared the House with an […]
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul has signed a bill designed to expand awareness of advance care planning, hospice, and palliative care. The new law requires the New York State Department of Health to develop a public awareness campaign to promote advance care planning. The campaign must include education about hospice and palliative care, according to […]
Stakeholders in the hospice space are optimistic that Congress will pass the recently reintroduced Palliative Care and Hospice Education Training Act (PCHETA). While some see the bill as a beacon of hope, sustainable change will likely require more than a single piece of legislation. The legislation has percolated for the past five years without passing, […]
Sens. Tammy Baldwin (D-Wisc.) and Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.) have reintroduced the Palliative Care and Hospice Education Training Act (PCHETA), designed to bolster the field’s shrinking workforce with federal support. If enacted, PCHETA would support hospice and palliative care training programs for physicians, nurses, pharmacists, social workers and chaplains. The bill would also expand continuing […]
Congressional lawmakers have reached consensus on a $1.5 trillion omnibus bill to fund the federal government. In addition to big ticket items such as additional COVID response funds and aid to Ukraine, the legislation extends temporary flexibilities for virtual care instituted during the federally declared public health emergency (PHE). When enacted, the bill will extend […]
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