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The hospice Medicare benefit pays for the hospice care of terminally ill individuals and their families. The Medicare rates are being threatened. Even though healthcare has seen many reductions in reimbursement, the hospice medicare benefit is an all inclusive daily rate for everything that relates to the terminal illness. The medicare rates to date for hospice care have not kept up with inflation and cost of living over the past 25 years.  A reduction in the Medicare benefit will hurt the hospice industry tremendously.

All hospices will be affected, but especially the Non-Profit community hospices (which are the majority of hospice programs to date in the country) will find it even more difficult to keep their doors open. The philanthropic dollar, at the same time, is diminishing for many reasons. Many of the community programs rely on this philanthropic donation to cover what the medicare benefit may not. So, if Medicare reduces its funds to hospice programs, it is a double whammy for hospice revenue generation.

The future of hospice is in the hands of the legislators and what they choose to do. Those who are dying have the right to die with dignity and peace of mind. 

The Medicare benefit has also saved the national healthcare system millions of dollars, if it is reduced, healthcare costs run the risk of increasing since most hospices will not be able to provide as much care as they once did. 

Please take time to contact your legislator.  The care of the dying may be up to you.

Read more below:

To: NHPCO Membership
From: Public Policy Team
Date: April 23, 2008

Earlier this year, as part of its annual budget proposal, the Administration gave notice of a proposed rule making that would cut hospice reimbursement rates by altering the wage index adjustment (phasing out the budget neutrality factor). If implemented, such a reduction would cut hospice reimbursement by more than $2.29 billion. Hospice programs rely on Medicare for a disproportionate share of their revenues, totaling 80-85%, and given the patient population that hospice serves, this reliance on Medicare is unavoidable. Cutting rates by billions of dollars would reduce the resources available to continue providing this necessary care. Congress needs to act to block this action; otherwise, CMS can proceed without appropriate oversight and regard to the effect that such an action might have.

NHPCO has already let Congress know that acting on the Administration’s proposal would have a devastating impact on hospice care, but now we need YOU to keep the momentum going by contacting your local representatives today through the quick and easy-to-use NHPCO Legislative Action Center.

Through customizable email messages that will go directly to congressional offices, we are simply asking representatives to add their names to a letter being circulated from Congress to the Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Michael Leavitt, asking him to keep the current hospice rate structure in Medicare. This is the necessary first step to preserving the hospice benefit as we know it.  Your elected representatives need to hear from you that hospice is important to your local community and that you expect them to sign on to the letter to the Secretary. We are asking you to act quickly, as CMS is expected to begin the process to change the rate structure perhaps as early as next week. 

Please take a couple of minutes out of your busy day to customize your message to your elected officials by going to the NHPCO Legislative Action Center,http://capwiz.com/nhpco/home/, and taking action today. 

Also, please forward this message to others in the hospice community who are committed to preserving hospice.  We need a ground swell!

Please contact NHPCO’s Director of Public Policy Angie Montes,amontes@nhpco.org, with any questions – and welcome Angie to the NHPCO team!