Given the critical role of family caregivers in home-based care, hospices have a vested interest in expanding their access to support. Families caring for seriously ill loved ones face systemic barriers that could threaten patients’ ability to receive care at home, including at the end of life. If a family can’t withstand these burdens, the […]
To a certain extent, hospices will soon be operating under pre-pandemic rules in a “post-COVID” world. With the COVID-19 Public Health Emergency (PHE) going away on May 11, many of the temporary flexibilities that came with it are expected to end, though Congress did extend some through 2024, including hospice re-certifications via telehealth. The flexibilities […]
Four national hospice and senior care industry groups have called on Congress and the U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) to make regulatory and legislative changes to instill stronger program integrity safeguards. The organizations penned a joint letter to CMS in November urging for increased oversight to help curb hospice frauds, including the […]
Language barriers, mistrust of the health care system and a lack of diverse staff are the most common obstacles between hospice care and underserved communities, research from the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization (NHPCO) recently found. NHPCO’s Diversity Advisory Council, in partnership with Transcend Strategy Group, recently polled more than 1,200 individuals among LGBTQ+, […]
A federal court has sentenced Akop Atoyan, former co-owner of three California home health and hospice agencies, to 25 months in prison for health care fraud and kickback schemes. Atoyan pled guilty to the changes. He and his wife Liana Karapetyan owned ANG Health Care, Excel Hospice, and Excel Home Healthcare in the Sacramento area. […]
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul (D) has vetoed legislation that would have effectively banned new, for-profit hospices in the state. The New York State Assembly passed the bill in June and submitted it to the governor’s office in mid-December. It would have prohibited the establishment of for-profit hospices in New York state and forbid current […]
The possibility exists that hospice care will change more in the next few years than it has during the previous four decades. The Medicare Hospice Benefit turned 40-years-old in 2022, and in that time the program has remained fundamentally unchanged. Adjustments have occurred, like implementation of the “U-shaped curve” in reimbursement, the service intensity add-on […]
The number of hospice volunteers plunged during the first two years of the pandemic, and many are still working to rebuild their ranks. Many hospices saw volunteer volumes dip drastically as they suspended activities during the pandemic. Roughly 78% of hospice and palliative care providers around the globe indicated “less or much less” use of […]
Huge acquisitions, the labor shortage and regulation dominated the news this year, but other important trends emerged that warrant attention. Below are 10 of this year’s “hidden gem” stories that didn’t quite make our top 10 most read. These cover the innovative partnerships, new technologies, pediatric care, health equity and other key developments in the […]
Leaders of the U.S. Senate’s Comprehensive Care Caucus have asked federal regulators to examine program integrity within the Medicare Hospice Benefit. The four senators wrote to the U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Administrator Chiquita Brooks-LaSure, urging the agency to investigate a spate of newly licensed hospice operators in multiple states that some […]
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