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Hospice to cost Medicare $6 Billion in 2005
Rural Hospices Get $23 Million Boost from Medicare
Payment Change
 Aug.
27, 2004 A change in the way payments are determined for hospice care
will results in Medicare payments to rural hospices increasing $23
million in 2005, a 2.9 percent increase over 2004. The overall projected
increase for all hospice providers is $60 million dollars, an increase
of 1 percent.
Hospice care was added as a benefit under the
Medicare program in 1983 and under Medicaid in 1985. In 2005, hospice
services are expected to account for $6 billion in Medicare payments.
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Below are a few web sites that have
frequently asked questions and other information about hospice
care. These web sites are not all-inclusive, but are a sampling
of what can be found.:
The
End of Life Planning Information Guide provides assistance
on planning and decision making.
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As a result of improvements in how payments are
calculated, Medicare payments for hospice services in rural areas will
more accurately reflect costs, said Dr. Mark B. McClellan,
Administrator of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services.
Thousands of beneficiaries and their families can be comforted that
Medicare will help with the high costs of this care.
For millions of Medicare beneficiaries and their
families, reliable, high-quality hospice care means they can spend their
final days in the comfort of their own homes, especially in underserved
areas of the country, Dr. McClellan. This payment increase helps
ensure that beneficiaries in rural areas have access to the quality
hospice services that they need.
Hospice care is covered under the Medicare Hospital
Insurance program and is available to all beneficiaries enrolled in
Medicare Part A. To be eligible, their physician and the hospice medical
director must certify that they are terminally ill, with six months or
less to live if their illness runs its normal course. When a beneficiary
elects the hospice benefit, they are accepting palliative care geared
towards physical, emotional, spiritual and psychological comfort for
their terminal illness instead of the curative model of care.
Beneficiaries can receive hospice services wherever
they reside, be it at home, a nursing home, a hospital, or other
facility or setting where the patient resides. Once in hospice, they may
also continue to have Medicare coverage for treatment of other problems
not related to their terminal illness.
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