Catholic Hospice has been selected to participate in the Medicare Care Choices Model, announced recently by Health and Human Services Secretary Sylvia M. Burwell. The model provides Medicare beneficiaries who qualify for coverage under the Medicare Hospice Benefit and dually eligible beneficiaries who qualify for the Medicaid Hospice Benefit the option to elect to receive supportive care services typically provided by hospice and continue to receive curative services at the same time. The model empowers beneficiaries, their families, and clinicians by providing them with greater flexibility in deciding between hospice care and curative treatment when faced with life limiting illness. Today’s announcement is part of a larger effort to transform our health care system to deliver better care, spend our dollars in a smarter way, and put patients in the center of their care.
Hospice care is covered by both the Medicare and Medicaid programs. When hospice care is chosen, a beneficiary is no longer eligible to receive curative care. According to March 2015 Medicare Payment Policy Report to the Congress, only 47.3 percent of Medicare and 42 percent of dually eligible beneficiaries used hospice care and most only for a short period of time. This data reflects the struggle in having to choose between palliative and curative care during these difficult times.
