Hospice News

MARCH 15, 2024

The Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC) has recommended to Congress a freeze on hospice payment increases starting in 2025. In its annual report to Congress, MedPAC urged policymakers to eliminate hospice base-rate increases for 2025. The 2021 aggregated Medicare hospice margin was 13.3%, according to MedPAC.

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Hospice News

APRIL 8, 2024

Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ (CMS) 2025 proposed hospice rule contained requests for information (RFIs) that could signal changes in the agency’s thinking on key issues. Through RFIs, CMS tries to take the pulse of providers’ positions on certain questions that could impact the Medicare Hospice Benefit.

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Hospice News

MARCH 4, 2024

Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services will end the hospice component of the value-based insurance design model (VBID) as of Dec. Often called the “hospice carve-in,” the program was designed to test coverage of hospice care through Medicare Advantage, in addition to some coverage of palliative care and transitional care.

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Hospice News

JANUARY 17, 2024

Hospice providers, industry groups and other stakeholders recently penned a letter urging Congress to improve payment infrastructures that would increase access to end-of-life care among rural populations. For some rural areas, they’re not seen as financially feasible or sustainable to larger programs,” Kuhlman told Hospice News. “So,

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Hospice News

JANUARY 12, 2024

The Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC) has voted to recommend a freeze on hospice payment increases starting in 2025. This recommendation is offered at a time when hospice care costs have risen faster than any inflation update provided by CMS,” Dombi told Hospice News in an email. “A

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Hospice News

OCTOBER 13, 2023

Implementation of the Medicare Advantage hospice carve-in has been challenging for both payers and providers, though a recent analysis indicates that it may get easier over time. to conduct the analysis of the program, formally called the hospice component of the value-based insurance design model (VBID).

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Hospice News

FEBRUARY 8, 2024

After 75 years of service, Georgia-based hospice provider Visiting Nurse Health System (VNHS) has its sights set on the future. Founded in 1948, the organization was the first home-based care provider to operate in Georgia, and in 1975 launched the state’s first hospice program. Seniors represented 14.7%

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Hospice News

MAY 25, 2023

Massachusetts-based Advanced Home Care has acquired Dignity Hospice Care for an undisclosed amount. The transaction follows Advanced Home Care’s acquisition of Dignity Home Care late last year. The buyer company’s CEO Art Kalenjian will now take the helm at Dignity Hospice.

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Hospice News

FEBRUARY 9, 2024

Florida-based Big Bend Hospice has unveiled a new inpatient hospice unit on the third floor of Tallahassee Memorial Hospital (TMH). Most Americans want to spend their last moments at home, surrounded by their loved ones,” said Dr. Deborah Morris, chief medical officer for Big Bend Hospice, said in a statement. Census Bureau.

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Hospice News

APRIL 8, 2024

HopeHealth has been growing its pediatric hospice and supportive care service lines in recent years to address a range of unmet needs among seriously ill children and their families. HopeHealth provides home care, hospice, palliative and dementia care, as well as caregiver and grief support services.

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HopeHealth

AUGUST 16, 2022

Attleboro, MA — According to patients, families and caregivers in Massachusetts, HopeHealth’s hospice care and HopeHealth Community VNA’s home health care are among the nation’s best. In 2021 in the Bay State, HopeHealth and HopeHealth Community VNA ranked in Read More.

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Hospice News

MARCH 23, 2023

Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) is extending the value-based insurance design demonstration for calendar years 2025 to 2030, including the hospice component. The hospice component of VBID, also called the MA carve-in, launched in 2021 and was originally slated to complete after four years. It makes sense.

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Hospice News

DECEMBER 19, 2023

Residential Hospice has acquired Illinois-based Safe Haven Hospice from the senior living provider Christian Horizons for an undisclosed sum. “We share a commitment of putting patients and families first by providing exceptional care focused on optimizing the quality of life, comfort and dignity of our patients.”

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HopeHealth

DECEMBER 30, 2021

HopeHealth recaps its top 5 most popular blog stories of 2021. Topics included family love and empathy, end-of-life spiritual questions, the science of hospice care, pandemic myths and the nursing profession. The post What were the top 5 stories of HopeHealth’s 2021 blog? appeared first on HopeHealth.

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Hospice News

NOVEMBER 1, 2023

NASDAQ: PNTG) has acquired Guardian Hospice and Guardian Hospice of Oklahoma for an undisclosed amount. Guardian Hospice of Oklahoma received Medicare certification in 2015 and has since grown its presence in the state and across Texas. About 143,284 Medicare decedents utilized hospice in Texas in 2021, according to the U.S.

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Hospice News

SEPTEMBER 20, 2023

Guaranteed’s New SVP of Growth, Strategy Tech-enabled hospice startup Guaranteed has named Ryan Malone as its new senior vice president of growth and strategy. Before joining Guaranteed, Malone served as vice president of sales and partnerships at mental health provider Thriveworks since 2021.

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Hospice News

JUNE 2, 2023

Hosparus Health has acquired Baptist Health Deaconess Hospice in Madisonville, Kentucky, for an undisclosed sum. Founded in 1978, Hosparus Health’s 600 employees and 500 volunteers provide care for more than 10,000 patients annually, including hospice, medical care, palliative medicine, mental health and bereavement services. “Our

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Hospice News

JUNE 14, 2023

Meanwhile, Medicare hospice spending is expected to more than double by 2032. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) Office of the Actuary also project that health care expenditures will represent 19.6% of the nation’s gross domestic product by the end of that time frame, up from slightly more than 18% in 2021.

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Hospice News

DECEMBER 9, 2022

The hospice component of the value-based insurance design (VBID) model will begin its third year on Jan. Often called the MA hospice carve-in , the voluntary demonstration is designed to assess payer and provider performance related to hospice within Medicare Advantage (MA).

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Hospice News

JULY 26, 2023

Agape Care Group has acquired two hospices for undisclosed sums — Birmingham, Alabama-based Hope Hospice and Assured Hospice in Cartersville, Georgia. With the addition of Hope Hospice, the company’s footprint has expanded across 20 Alabama counties. Agape is a portfolio company of Ridgemont Equity Partners.

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Hospice News

MARCH 29, 2023

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. However, those numbers fell by nearly five days in 2021 to 92.1,

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Hospice News

SEPTEMBER 8, 2023

Over time, Medicare Advantage plans will likely have a greater presence as hospice payers, and now is the time for providers to build relationships those organizations. Originally slated to end in 2024, CMS recently extended the hospice component of the value-based insurance design model (VBID) to 2023. million beneficiaries.

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Hospice News

AUGUST 21, 2023

Evolving network adequacy requirements within the value-based insurance design (VBID) model demonstration have some hospices concerned that Medicare Advantage payers may have narrowed views on reimbursement and access. And that’s a big concern when it comes to hospice care.” This year the U.S.

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Hospice News

MARCH 1, 2024

Croix Hospice has opened a de novo in the Clarinda, Iowa, community. Croix Hospice often looks for markets in which hospice utilization is comparatively low, including historically underserved rural communities, St. Croix Hospice Founder and CEO Heath Bartness previously told Hospice News. In October 2022, St.

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Hospice News

JUNE 22, 2023

Recent allegations that staff at HCA Healthcare (NYSE: HCA) put pressure on patients to enter hospice dovetail with longstanding questions over how and when patients should be referred. SEIU benchmarked HCA’s hospice transfer rates against national data. It’s hard to say that you have proof. This looks really questionable.”

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Hospice News

SEPTEMBER 27, 2023

Health plan participation in the hospice component of the value-based insurance design model (VBID) will fall in 2024. For calendar year 2024, 13 Medicare Advantage Organizations (MAOs) will participate in the program’s hospice component, providing coverage through 78 health plans in 19 states. “It’s been a rocky road.

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Hospice News

FEBRUARY 13, 2023

Croix Hospice has expanded in Wisconsin, opening its 14th location in the state. “We have been serving the state of Wisconsin for many years, continuing our long tradition of exceptional patient care,” St. . Croix Hospice CEO Heath Bartness said in a press release. ” Adults 65 and older accounted for 17.5%

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Hospice News

NOVEMBER 1, 2023

Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has finalized its 2024 home health rule, including the implementation of a hospice Special Focus Program (SFP). The rule also finalizes the proposed “36-month”rule for hospice providers. The requirement mirrors a regulation that has existed for several years for home health agencies.

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Hospice News

MAY 16, 2023

Nashville-based Alive Hospice recently responded to speculation that the nonprofit will sell its operations to a for-profit company, a move that has sparked cries of opposition within the local community. A spate of news reports have indicated that Alive Hospice may be up for sale to a publicly traded for-profit entity.

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Hospice News

JANUARY 19, 2024

Though the number of hospice M&A deals plummeted in 2023 compared to prior years, deals are still being made, and the industry may see a rebound in 2024. Transaction volume declined in the hospice and home-based care space in 2023, following the two record-breaking prior years. This followed its $5.4 NYSE: HUM) for $2.8

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Hospice News

FEBRUARY 3, 2023

Mansfield, Texas-based Angels Care Hospice has set the ball rolling on expanding to two additional counties, reaching areas that have lacked a provider for more than a decade. Angels Care is a portfolio company of AngMar Medical Holdings, Inc. Angels Care is a portfolio company of AngMar Medical Holdings, Inc.

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Hospice News

APRIL 25, 2023

Effective May 1, the North Carolina-based hospital UNC Health Southeastern (UNC) will transfer ownership of its community-based hospice operations to Lower Cape Fear LifeCare. Cape Fear LifeCare will also assist UNC by providing palliative care consultations within the hospital. About 585 died while receiving hospice care that year.

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Hospice News

SEPTEMBER 19, 2023

Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) should clarify timeframes associated with a proposed informal dispute resolution process for hospice providers and retool aspects of the agency’s forthcoming Special Focus Program, according to an industry group representing nonprofits. CMS states.” million annually.

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Hospice News

APRIL 13, 2023

Idaho-based Hospice & Palliative Care of the Wood River Valley has initiated Spanish-speaking services in an effort to reach underserved Latino patients and families. Hospice & Palliative Care of the Wood River Valley is part of the Idaho Health Continuum of Care Alliance, a group of post-acute health care providers.

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Hospice News

DECEMBER 12, 2023

Program integrity issues that have heated up in the hospice space during the past five years reached a boiling point in 2023. Hospice providers have seen an array of increased regulatory oversight in 2023. There is scrutiny on hospice care [that’s] setting the stage for the next phase of what hospice oversight looks like.

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Hospice News

JULY 3, 2023

The Illinois legislature has passed a bill that would increase the maximum number of licensed hospice locations in each of the state’s counties to 16, up from five. In addition to boosting the maximum number of hospices, the forthcoming law would permit hospice facilities to care for as many as 24 patients, up from 20.

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Hospice News

SEPTEMBER 5, 2023

The home health and hospice provider recently announced the leadership changes in a filing with the U.S. Ginn served in that same role before being promoted to CFO in 2017 and executive vice president in 2021. The company in June announced plans to acquire the massive home health and hospice provider Amedisys for $3.3

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