Researchers: Hospice Benefit Should Be Redesigned for LTC Residents

Researchers at the Regenstrief Institute and the Indiana University Center for Aging Research are recommending that Medicare reconsider how they support nursing home residents who need hospice care.

The researchers said the current hospice benefit isn't a good fit for nursing home residents because of the way eligibility criteria is configured. Nursing home residents tend to have longer average hospice stays than individuals living in a community setting (nearly a third of nursing home residents receive hospice services for longer than six months, compared to less than one week for about one-third of hospice users overall). Residents are also more likely to dually eligible for both Medicare and Medicaid, be women and have dementia.

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