Hospice News

DECEMBER 13, 2022

Most hospices are sliding into 2023 between a rock and a hard place, beset by headwinds, labor shortages and questions with no easy answers. Government oversight of hospice providers will tighten during 2023. A coalition of hospice industry organizations recently urged the U.S. Be ready for regulation.

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Hospice News

SEPTEMBER 12, 2022

Uintah Home Health and Hospice patients began receiving services under the Canyon umbrella earlier this month. The home health and hospice provider is part of the home care service line of Uintah Basin Healthcare. Utah holds the highest rate of hospice utilization among Medicare decedents nationwide.

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NHPCO

MARCH 21, 2023

For Immediate Release March 22, 2023 New Research Shows Hospice Care Reduces Medicare Costs Hospice Care Contributed to $3.5 billion in savings for Medicare in 2019, while providing multiple benefits to patients, families, and caregivers.

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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. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). For this year, CMS increased the hospice base rate by 3.1%. set in 2023.

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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

JUNE 14, 2023

The nation’s total health care spend is expected to swell by 5.4% 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% These data from the U.S.

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Hospice News

MARCH 20, 2023

Hospices are blazing trails toward growth, each provider with its own range of strategies. In 2023, the focus for many is to not only expand their core business but to spread further into the care continuum. In this story, Hospice News highlights the growth strategies of several providers.

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Hospice News

MARCH 12, 2024

The nation’s four largest hospice industry organizations — LeadingAge, the National Association for Home Care & Hospice (NAHC), the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization (NHPCO) and the National Partnership for Healthcare and Hospice Innovation (NPHI) — in late 2023 conducted a 133-respondent provider survey focused on regulation.

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NHPCO

JULY 28, 2023

For Immediate Release July 28, 2023 New Research Shows Hospice Produces Better Outcomes, Lower Medicare Costs (Washington, D.C. billion in Medicare savings in 2019, while also providing multiple benefits to patients, families, and caregivers. billion less than it would have been had they not received hospice care.

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Hospice News

APRIL 12, 2023

Data is more crucial to hospice businesses than ever before when it comes to payer and referral partner contracting, compliance and building their census. But even outside of new payment models, upstream providers are looking more closely at the numbers when selecting hospice partners.

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Hospice News

JULY 28, 2023

Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) is giving hospices a 3.1% That will translate to a $780 million bump to hospice payments next year compared to Fiscal Year 2023, according to CMS. set in 2023. set in 2023. payment boost the agency initially proposed for 2024 hospice payments back in March.

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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

SEPTEMBER 22, 2023

The four largest hospice industry organizations have been working to present a united front to address widespread program integrity issues. Many of these hospices were also setting up shop, providing substandard care to a few patients and then selling off the license before regulators caught wind of it. This prompted the U.S.

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Hospice News

JULY 21, 2023

As federal regulators intensify their focus on hospices, operators may begin seeing an influx of Recovery Audit Contractor (RAC) activity. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) contracts with RACs to conduct post-payment reviews designed to recover any funds that may have been overspent.

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Hospice News

JANUARY 25, 2023

Kentucky-based Hosparus Health is poised for expansion — through joint ventures, new investments in its palliative care program and the forthcoming launch of a PACE center. The nonprofit hospice provider’s subsidiary — Care Guide Partners — has applied to the U.S.

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Hospice News

MAY 9, 2023

The future of telehealth in hospice care delivery is among the questions swirling around the expiration of the COVID-19 public health emergency (PHE) on May 11. Though initially the telehealth waivers weren’t intended to be permanent, they will likely have long-term impacts in hospice.

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Hospice News

APRIL 14, 2023

Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) is moving towards the development of health equity quality measures for hospices. Last year, the agency convened a technical expert panel (TEP) to study the issue, according to language in its 2024 proposed hospice rule.

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Hospice News

JUNE 21, 2023

Longer general inpatient hospice stays and high-cost issues are reasons for the audit, dubbed the “Audit of Selected, High-Risk Medicare Hospice General Inpatient Services,” according to OIG. The audit is among a host of others in the health care space that the agency rolled out this month in its Work Plan initiatives.

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Hospice News

AUGUST 10, 2023

NASDAQ: AVAH) was a company mostly focused on in-home care to pediatric populations. When the Atlanta-based provider filed to go public in April 2021, however, it revealed ambitious plans to expand into the arenas of Medicare-certified home health and hospice care. “We million, a 6.5%

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Hospice News

JANUARY 20, 2023

Eden Health recently announced plans to acquire Washington state-based Community Home Health & Hospice’s (CHHH) inpatient programs. Eden Health will take over Community’s inpatient services effective May 1, 2023. Financial terms of the transaction were undisclosed.

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Hospice News

MARCH 16, 2023

The Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC) has once again recommended a 20% cut to the aggregate cap for hospice payments. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) set the 2023 cap at $32,486.92, up from nearly $31,300 per patient for Fiscal Year 2022. To me, it just logically doesn’t make sense.”

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Home Care Pulse

JULY 26, 2022

– July 2021: What is the Hospice Care Index? – What did this level of oversight tell hospice agencies? Article Contents: July 2021: What is the Hospice Care Index? What did this level of oversight tell hospice agencies? July 2021: What is the Hospice Care Index? Who did best?

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Hospice News

MAY 6, 2022

The State of New York’s recently approved budget for Fiscal Year 2023 required that home care and hospice aides be paid at least $2 more than the state’s $15 standard minimum wage. Without enough staff to support demand, hospice care could continue to fall short in improving access and utilization, she indicated.

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Hospice News

AUGUST 25, 2023

The program is designed to recognize up-and-coming industry members who are shaping the next decade of home health, hospice care, senior housing, skilled nursing, and behavioral health. It can be weeks, months, or years before death and an interdisciplinary palliative or home care program can be a great transition to hospice.

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NHPCO

NOVEMBER 1, 2023

For Immediate Release November 1, 2023 (Alexandria, VA and Washington, DC) – The four preeminent national hospice organizations – LeadingAge, the National Association for Home Care & Hospice (NAHC), the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization (NHPCO) and the National Partnership for Healthcare and Hospice Innovation (NPHI) – strongly (..)

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Hospice News

NOVEMBER 11, 2022

Lagging reimbursement rates amid wage hikes, inflation surges and steep compensation competition have put hospice between a rock and hard place in the staffing battle. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) recently proposed a 2.7% pay increase for hospice care for Fiscal Year 2023.

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Hospice News

DECEMBER 5, 2022

CommCare’s purchase of Notre Dame’s home health and hospice operations marks the transaction of this divestiture Its nursing home services are next in line as part of a separate deal set to close in 2023. Acquiring the home health business opens new doors for CommCare, according to Tucker. “Up Census Bureau.

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NHPCO

JULY 25, 2023

These program integrity efforts include: Revocation of Medicare enrollment: CMS has identified fraud schemes and increased its operational ability to revoke Medicare enrollment more quickly. Organizational Deactivation: CMS proposes to revoke Medicare certification if a provider has not billed any claims within six months.

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Hospice News

NOVEMBER 14, 2023

. — Nick Westfall, CEO, VITAS Healthcare Earlier access and longer hospice stays can reduce health care costs in the last year of life by as much as 11%, a recent joint report found from the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization (NHPCO), the National Association for Home Care & Hospice (NAHC) and NORC at the University of Chicago.

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Hospice News

DECEMBER 6, 2023

ACHC initially focused on accrediting home health agencies, but over the years, it has expanded its scope to include other health care sectors such as hospice, hospital, pharmacy, DME, home care and renal dialysis. Editor’s Note: This article has been edited for length and clarity.

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Hospice News

OCTOBER 25, 2022

Former Community CEO Susan-Ponder Stansel moved on to lead Alivia Care. Ward, who has worked in hospice since 1992, also serves as the COO of Alivia Care. Hospice News sat down with Ward at the National Association for Home Care and Hospice Conference and Expo in St. Medicare Advantage is expanding.

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Hospice News

MARCH 21, 2024

Members of Congress are raising questions about the continued Medicare certification for new hospices in areas rife with fraud. Some of these providers engaged in referral kickback schemes, enrolled patients who were not eligible for hospice and lied to them about being terminally ill. Michelle Steel (R-Calif.)

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Hospice News

NOVEMBER 2, 2023

This article is based on a Hospice News discussion with Daniel Schwartz, Chief Strategy Officer at Elara Caring, Devin Woodley, VP of Managed Care Contracting and B2B Sales at VNS Health, Gavin Baumgardner, VP and National Medical Director for Complex and Palliative care at Amedisys, and Anthony Spano, Director of Client Development at Netsmart.

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Hospice News

JULY 13, 2023

This is the first of a two-part service that will detail key findings from recent research on hospice care, featuring numbers that could influence they ways hospices communicate and operate. Hospices’ cost-savings potential A study published in March revealed that hospice saved Medicare roughly $3.5

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Hospice News

NOVEMBER 14, 2022

This year brought the return of Medicare sequestration, and pandemic-driven disruption in referral streams are lingering. Generally, fewer clinicians has meant fewer patients have been receiving hospice care, according to industry observers and companies’ own reports. VITAS, Aveanna, and Addus Home Care Corp.

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Hospice News

NOVEMBER 17, 2023

Hospice News spoke with a group of industry leaders about the most impactful forces that will shape the space in the coming year. A few of 2023’s largest hurdles include intensifying regulatory oversight as well as prolific workforce shortages amid rising demand. CEOs and other hospice executives also noted emerging themes.

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Hospice News

DECEMBER 19, 2022

In 2022, the hospice community laid the groundwork for a transformational 2023. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) developed new approaches for enforcing hospice regulations that will become effective on Jan. These trends in value-based care have even influenced the M&A market.

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