Is hospice care a type of palliative care?

Yes. Hospice is a specific, heavily regulated form of palliative care reserved for patients with a six-month-or-less prognosis who have chosen comfort care over curative treatment. All hospice care is palliative; not all palliative care is hospice.

Can you receive palliative care while still getting curative treatment?

Yes. Palliative care is designed to run alongside treatments meant to cure or control an illness, such as chemotherapy or dialysis. This is one of its defining features and the main practical difference from hospice.

Do you have to be terminally ill to qualify for palliative care?

No. Palliative care is based on the presence of a serious illness and related symptoms, not a prognosis timeline. It is available at any age and any stage of illness, including right after diagnosis.

How long can someone stay on hospice care?

There is no fixed limit. Medicare structures hospice as two initial 90-day benefit periods followed by an unlimited number of 60-day periods, as long as a physician recertifies the six-month-or-less prognosis at each renewal.

Can you leave hospice care and go back to curative treatment?

Yes. A patient or their representative can revoke the hospice election at any time by filing a written statement with the hospice. Once revoked, the patient resumes standard Medicare coverage for the benefits they had waived, and can elect hospice again later if they still qualify.

Is hospice care free under Medicare?

It is close to free. Medicare covers hospice services from an approved hospice at no charge, with at most a $5 copay per prescription for outpatient pain and symptom medication and a 5% coinsurance on inpatient respite care. Treatment aimed at curing the terminal illness is not covered once hospice is elected.

Who provides palliative care?

An interdisciplinary team that typically includes physicians, nurses, social workers, and often chaplains or dietitians, delivered in hospitals, outpatient clinics, nursing homes, or private homes.

What does the Hospice Care Index (HCI) measure?

A claims-based composite score CMS calculates from 10 indicators covering the timing of clinical visits, transitions into and out of hospice, and consistency of care delivery, scored on a 0-to-10 scale for every Medicare-certified hospice.

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Hospice vs. Palliative Care: What's the Actual Difference?

Hospice Guidebook

Sep 1

0 min read

Updated: Sep 13