Lawmakers Introduce Bill to Put Hold on Cut to
Medicare Hospice Reimbursement
National hospice group is also suing the Bush
dministration to stop cuts
Sept. 15, 2008 A bi-partisan bill introduced in
the House and Senate has brought smiles to the faces of leaders of the
National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization (NHPCO). The bill
would prevent the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services from
implementing a rule for at least a year that reduces Medicares hospice
pay rates. The group has also sued the Bush Administration to stop the
cuts.
The
Medicare Hospice Protection Act of 2008 (H.R. 6873 and S. 3484) was
introduced in the House last week by Representatives Van Hollen (D-Md.),
Jim Ramstad (R-Minn.) and Maurice Hinchey (D-N.Y.).
Those introducing the Senate version were Senators
Arlen Specter (R-Penn.), Pat Roberts (R-Kan.), Tom Harkin (D-Iowa), Ron
Wyden (D-Ore.), Gordon Smith (R-Ore.), Jay Rockefeller (D-W.Va.) and
Susan Collins (R-Maine).
"We welcome this bill and applaud the leadership of
these members of Congress," said J. Donald Schumacher, president and CEO
of the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization (NHPCO), which
represents 4,000 hospices nationwide.
"What this bicameral, bipartisan group did was to
step in and protect our nation's most vulnerable population the
terminally ill by fighting to protect hospice for future generations."
Earlier this year, CMS announced that it will cut
Medicare reimbursement rates for hospice, forcing many hospice providers
across the country to either significantly scale back care at the
bedside or to shut their doors altogether.
The rule alters the wage index adjustment by
phasing out the budget neutrality adjustment factor (BNAF) that was
applied to the hospice wage index in 1997 to minimize the disruption in
beneficiary access to hospice services.
If implemented, according to the NHPCO, such a
reduction would cut hospice reimbursement by almost $2.2 billion.
Average hospice reimbursement would be reduced from current levels by
more than 4 percent. The final rule, published in The Federal Register,
is effective October 1, 2008.
"CMS is trying to do through the back door what
they can't accomplish through the front, and that is cutting
reimbursement to hospice. Congress has held firm in understanding the
compassionate care that hospice provides to patients and families," said
Jonathan Keyserling, executive director of the Alliance for Care at the
End of Life.
According to an independent 2007 Duke University
study, hospice saves Medicare an average of $2,300 per patient,
amounting to a total savings of about $2 billion a year.
Considered to be the model for high-quality care
for terminally ill patients, hospice focuses on caring, not curing, and,
in most cases, is provided in the patient's home. Hospice professionals
are experts in providing pain and symptom management to the dying, the
NHPCO notes.
Additional services include emotional and spiritual
support to patients and their family caregivers as well as caregiver
training. More than 1.3 million dying Americans received care from the
nation's hospice providers last year, a number that continues to rise.
A Gallup poll found that nine out of 10 Americans,
if faced with a terminal illness, would want to remain in their homes
and receive the services that hospice provides. In fact, more than 80
percent of hospice care in the U.S. is provided in the home. And patient
satisfaction with hospice approaches 100 percent as shown by data
collected from family caregivers.
Congress Once Again Rescues Hospice
Congress has historically rejected Administration
requests to reduce the level of hospice reimbursement, realizing the
harmful impact such cuts would have on care at the bedside. "And this
time is no different," says Keyserling.
Congress should act quickly to ensure the Medicare
reimbursement is protected and those at the end of life have access to
hospice care, before the October 1 implementation date.
"It is in our nation's fiscal and moral interest
that high-quality hospice care remains an option for all who need these
unique services and support," said Keyserling.
NHPCO is the oldest and largest nonprofit
membership organization representing hospice and palliative care
programs and professionals in the United States. NHPCO's mission is to
lead and mobilize social change for improved care at the end of life.
www.nhpco.org
The Alliance for Care at the End of Life, a 501(c)4
organization, was created by the National Hospice and Palliative Care
Organization (NHPCO) in April of 2007 to provide a more aggressive and
comprehensive advocacy voice that will serve the entire field and,
ultimately, one of America's most vulnerable populations - those nearing
the end of life.
www.afceol.org
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Sept. 15, 2008 A bi-partisan bill introduced in
the House and Senate has brought smiles to the faces of leaders of the
National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization (NHPCO). The bill
would prevent the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services from
implementing a rule for at least a year that reduces Medicares hospice
pay rates. The group has also sued the Bush Administration to stop the
cuts.