House Approves 2021 HHS Funding with Home-based Care Provisions

The U.S. House of Representatives has voted to allocate $96 billion for the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services (HHS), with provisions that could offer support to hospice and home care providers as well as patients and family caregivers. The House bill, which also contains funding for the departments of Education and Labor, will […]

Senate Bill Would Boost Hospice Respite Care During COVID-19

U.S. Sens. Sherrod Brown (D-Ohio) and Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.) have introduced new legislation that would allow hospice patients to receive respite care in their homes during a national emergency, such as the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. The bill would also extend the allowable length of stay to 15 days, up from the current limit of […]

Forthcoming Legislation Seeks to Delay Medicare Advantage Hospice Carve-In

Legislation will likely be forthcoming in Congress this week or next to delay implementation of the value-based insurance design (VBID) model demonstration project, commonly called the Medicare Advantage hospice carve-in. If enacted, the bill would move the program’s start date to 2023.  Currently, the carve-in is slated to begin Jan. 1, 2021. While hospice industry […]

Congress Members Call on CMS to Delay Hospice Carve-In

Members of the Ways and Means Committee in the U.S. House of Representatives have called for a one-year delay for the value-based insurance design model hospice demonstration, commonly called the Medicare Advantage carve-in. Reps. Adrian Smith (R-Neb.), Jackie Walorski (R-Ind.) and Terri Sewell (D-Ala.) sent a letter to Seema Verma, administrator of the U.S. Centers […]

New $3 Trillion COVID-19 Stimulus Could Impact Hospice

Legislation penned by Democrats in the U.S. House of Representatives could result in additional federal aid to hospices through the Public Health and Social Services Emergency Fund. If enacted, the bill — the Health and Economic Recovery Omnibus Emergency Solutions Act, or HEROES Act — would allocate an additional $175 billion to the fund, which […]

Hospice Providers to Receive Nearly $1 Billion in CARES Act Funds

The U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services has begun distributing the first $30 billion installment of public health funds from the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, also called the CARES ACT. An estimated $1 billion is expected to go to hospice and palliative care providers via direct deposit. The CARES Act, enacted […]

Fourth COVID-19 Stimulus Bill May Be Coming, Hospices Need Further Aid

Federal lawmakers have been sparring this week over a potential fourth legislative package to bolster the economy and the health care system amid the novel coronavirus outbreak. Many in the hospice space have their fingers crossed that a bill will come together and bring further financial and regulatory relief.  The White House and congressional leaders […]

New Jersey Would Include End-of-Life Wishes on Drivers’ Licenses

Sponsored by Assemblyman Herb Conaway Jr. (D-Burlington), a new bill before the New Jersey state legislature would establish a Practitioner Orders for Life-Sustaining Treatment (or POLST) Form Registry in the state of New Jersey. The bill would give residents the option to voluntarily register their end-of-life health care wishes through the Motor Vehicle Commission (MVC) […]

Older Americans Act Reauthorized with Funds for Hospice Family Caregivers, Social Determinants

Though somewhat overshadowed by the COVID-19 crisis, Congress has reauthorized the Older Americans Act, which provides funds to services for seniors, including those designed to help them age in place. Some provisions of the act allocate dollars to community-based programs that provide meals, transportation and other social determinants of health, allowing seniors to remain in […]

[UPDATED] President Signs Stimulus Bill, Allowing Telehealth for Hospice Recertification

President Donald Trump has signed into law a $2 trillion economic stimulus bill in response to the COVID-19 national emergency. Among numerous other provisions, the massive bill will allow hospice providers to conduct face-to-face recertification visits via telehealth and suspend the practice of 2% sequestration of hospice payments by the U.S. Centers for Medicare & […]