Subscriber FAQ | Hospice Guidebook

Question 1

What is Hospice Guidebook?

Accepted Answer

Hospice Guidebook is a free directory that helps families find and compare Medicare-certified hospice providers. Every listing is built on official quality data from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS). We earn revenue from flat-fee provider subscriptions — never from selling leads or charging per referral.

Question 2

Is my hospice already listed?

Accepted Answer

Most likely, yes. Every Medicare-certified hospice location in the CMS provider file receives a free Basic listing automatically — more than 6,600 in all. Search for your hospice by name, city, or ZIP code in the Provider Directory.

Question 3

How do I claim my listing?

Accepted Answer

Find your listing in the Provider Directory and open it. At the bottom of the page, click "Is this your business? Claim Your Profile Here." Log in or create a free account. Complete the short contact form. You'll then land on your Provider Dashboard.

Question 4

Does claiming cost anything?

Accepted Answer

No. Claiming is free and does not start a subscription. Your listing stays on the free Basic plan until you choose to subscribe.

Question 5

What plans are available?

Accepted Answer

There are three plans. Basic is free and includes your CMS quality data, address, Medicare certification, and the CMS phone number with one-tap Call Now. Standard ($199/month or $1,791/year) adds your own phone and email, a website link, 1 photo, a provider description of up to 1,000 characters, a short card description of up to 90 characters, up to 3 service-area ZIP codes, the 24/7 Crisis Response Staffing badge, and preferred placement in search results. Premium ($299/month or $2,691/year) includes everything in Standard, plus up to 6 photos, up to 8 service-area ZIP codes, a website link that is followed by search engines, and placement above Standard. Annual plans save 25% compared with paying monthly.

Question 6

What's the difference between the Standard and Premium website link?

Accepted Answer

Both plans include a link to your website. On Premium, the link is "followed" by search engines, which can pass search-ranking value from our directory to your own site. On Standard, the link is marked "nofollow," so it sends visitors to your site but doesn't pass that value.

Question 7

How do service-area ZIP codes work?

Accepted Answer

Enter the ZIP codes you serve in your Dashboard and we match each one to its city. While you're subscribed, families searching near any of those ZIP codes — by ZIP or by city name — can find you, not only those searching near your main office. Your listing also shows a "Serving …" line with those cities.

Question 8

How do I subscribe?

Accepted Answer

Claim your listing first, then click Subscribe on your Provider Dashboard and choose a plan. Please subscribe from your Dashboard rather than directly from the Pricing Plans page — that's how your payment is connected to the correct location.

Question 9

What payment methods do you accept?

Accepted Answer

Major credit and debit cards, Apple Pay, Google Pay, and PayPal.

Question 10

How do I cancel?

Accepted Answer

Log in, open the account menu, and select My Subscriptions (hospiceguidebook.com/my-subscriptions), then choose Cancel. You can also reach My Subscriptions from the Manage Subscription button on your Dashboard.

Question 11

What happens when I cancel?

Accepted Answer

Your subscription stays active through the period you've already paid for. After that, your listing returns to the free Basic plan. All paid features end at that time, including your photos, descriptions, service areas, website link, 24/7 Crisis Response Staffing badge, and preferred placement. Your listing's contact information returns to the phone number on file with CMS.

Question 12

Will I lose the content I entered?

Accepted Answer

No. Nothing you entered is deleted. It's hidden while your listing is on Basic and reappears automatically if you subscribe again.

Question 13

Do you offer refunds?

Accepted Answer

Per our Terms and Conditions: cancellation may occur at any time, and "the subscription remains active through the already-paid period, with no refund or proration, for either monthly or annual plans."

Question 14

Why doesn't my hospice have a star rating?

Accepted Answer

CMS only publishes a star rating once a hospice has at least 75 completed caregiver surveys in the reporting period. About 7 in 10 Medicare-certified hospices don't have a CAHPS star rating, most often because they're newer or smaller. A missing rating is never counted against you in our directory.

Question 15

What is Provider Excellence?

Accepted Answer

Recognition earned entirely from CMS data. A hospice qualifies in either of two ways: An HCI score of 9 or higher and a CAHPS rating of 4 stars or higher, or An HCI score of 9 or higher and no CAHPS star rating yet. The second path keeps newer and smaller hospices from being excluded simply because they don't yet have enough surveys for a star rating.

Question 16

Can I pay to improve my scores or earn Provider Excellence?

Accepted Answer

No. Quality scores and Provider Excellence come only from CMS data and can't be purchased or changed by subscribing.

Question 17

Does subscribing affect where I appear in search results?

Accepted Answer

Yes. Distance comes first — families always see nearby providers first. Among providers at a similar distance, Standard and Premium subscribers are shown ahead of Basic listings, with Premium above Standard and annual plans above monthly. When a family filters for a specific need, such as inpatient care or 24/7 crisis response staffing, only providers that meet it appear, regardless of subscription. See How Our Directory Works for details.

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