Ownership status and patterns of care in hospice: results from the National Home and Hospice Care Survey

Private Equity Acquisitions Of Hospices Are Increasing; Ownership Remains Opaque

Private equity ownership across the US health care system is rapidly increasing, yet ownership structures are complex and opaque. We used an economic data set tracking mergers and acquisitions linked to Medicare data to identify private equity hospice acquisitions. Given the influence of for-profit ownership on hospice quality, transparent data on private equity investment are fundamental to ensuring high-quality end-of-life care.

Overall US Hospice Quality According to Decedent Caregivers-Natural Language Processing and Sentiment Analysis of 3389 Online Caregiver Reviews

Objectives: With an untapped quality resource in online hospice reviews, study aims were exploring hospice caregiver experiences and assessing their expectations of the hospice Medicare benefit. Methods: Topical and sentiment analysis was conducted using natural language processing (NLP) of Google and Yelp caregiver reviews (n = 3393) between 2013-2023 using Google NLP. Stratified sampling weighted by hospice size to approximate the daily census of US hospice enrollees. Results: Overall caregiver sentiment of hospice care was neutral (S = .14). Therapeutic, achievable expectations and misperceptions, unachievable expectations were, respectively, the most and least prevalent domains. Four topics with the highest prevalence, all had moderately positive sentiments: caring staff, staff professionalism and knowledge; emotional, spiritual, bereavement support; and responsive, timely or helpful. Lowest sentiments scores were lack of staffing; promises made, but not kept, pain, symptoms and medications; sped-up death, hasted, or sedated; and money, staff motivations. Significance of Results: Caregivers overall rating of hospice was neutral, largely due to moderate sentiment on achievable expectations in two-thirds of reviews mixed with unachievable expectations in one-sixth of reviews. Hospice caregivers were most likely to recommend hospices with caring staff, providing quality care, responsive to requests, and offering family support. Lack of staff, inadequate pain-symptom management were the two biggest barriers to hospice quality. All eight CAHPS measures were found in the discovered review topics. Close-ended CAHPS scores and open-ended online reviews have complementary insights. Future research should explore associations between CAHPS and review insights.

How do enrollees feel about support in Big Hospices? - The caregiver experience of emotional, spiritual, and bereavement support by profit status among large US providers

OBJECTIVES

Recent findings narrate profiteering detrimentally impacting hospice care quality. However, no study has examined the caregiver experience of emotional and spiritual support expressed online. The purpose was to evaluate the hospice caregiver's experience of emotional, spiritual, and bereavement support and whether the care was respectful and compassionate to the care unit.

METHODS

Retrospective mixed methods of sentiment and quantitative analysis. Sources were online caregiver reviews (n = 4,279), Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (CAHPS) data on the 50 largest US hospices.

RESULTS

Caring and compassionate professionals were lauded in nonprofit (+.57) and for-profit settings (+.46). The nonprofit experience was in the excellent range (+42) for emotional, spiritual, and bereavement support but fell to dissatisfying (-.15) among for-profits. A respectful experience (16%) was much less commonly expressed than a compassionate one (38%). Distribution of CAHPS "Treating patient with respect" (M = 89.62, SD = 2.63) and "Emotional and spiritual support" (M = 89.80, SD = 2.04) limited inter-hospice comparisons.

SIGNIFICANCE OF RESULTS

Compassionate professionals were thanked and praised regardless of profit status. Sadly, anger was expressed toward large, for-profits more fixated on census than emotional, spiritual, and bereavement support; thankfully nonprofits were more supportive. CAHPS items for "Treating patient with respect" and "Emotional, spiritual support" offer limited discriminating value since low CAHPS performers always had relatively high scores on these 2, yet otherwise low scores on the remaining 6. Online reviews on the same topics provide a more substantive and realistic appraisal - distinguishing high from low performers. A higher bar than mere respect is needed for the tender experience of death, dying, and grieving. Compassion is an especially relevant addition to CAHPS since caregivers named compassionate staff as a distinguishing factor. Parity for mental health at end of life is a vital research topic. Future research should also explore the caregiver expectations set on admission.

Development of a model and method for hospice quality assessment from natural language processing (NLP) analysis of online caregiver reviews

OBJECTIVES

With a fraction of hospices having their Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (CAHPS®) scores on Hospice Compare, a significant reservoir of hospice quality data remains in online caregiver reviews. The purpose of this study was to develop a method and model of hospice quality assessment from caregiver reviews using Watson's carative model.

METHODS

Retrospective mixed methods of pilot qualitative thematic analysis and sentiment analysis using NLP of Google and Yelp caregiver reviews between 2013 and 2023. We employed stratified sampling, weighted according to hospice size, to emulate the daily census of enrollees across the United States. Sentiment analysis was performed (n = 3393) using Google NLP.

RESULTS

Two themes with the highest prevalence had moderately positive sentiments (S): Caring staff (+.47) and Care quality, comfort and cleanliness (+.41). Other positive sentiment scores with high prevalence were Gratitude and thanks (+.81), "Treating the patient with respect" (+.54), and "Emotional, spiritual, bereavement support" (+.60). Lowest sentiment scores were "Insurance, administrative or billing" (-.37), "Lack of staffing" (-.32), and "Communication with the family" (-.01).

SIGNIFICANCE OF RESULTS

In the developed quality model, caregivers recommended hospices with caring staff, providing quality care, responsive to requests, and offering family support, including bereavement care. All ten Watson's carative factors and all eight CAHPS measures were presented in the discovered review themes of the quality model. Close-ended CAHPS scores and open-ended online reviews have substantial conceptual overlap and complementary insights. Future hospice quality research should explore caregiver expectations and compare review themes by profit status.

Perspectives on Transfusions for Hospice Patients With Blood Cancers: A Survey of Hospice Providers

CONTEXT

Patients with blood cancers have low rates of hospice use. While lack of transfusion access in hospice is posited to substantially contribute to these low rates, little is known about the perspectives of hospice providers regarding transfusion access in hospice.

OBJECTIVES

To characterize hospice providers' perspectives regarding care for patients with blood cancers and transfusions in the hospice setting.

METHODS

In 2022, we conducted a cross-sectional survey of a sample of hospices in the United States regarding their experience caring for patients with blood cancers, perceived barriers to hospice use, and interventions to increase enrollment.

RESULTS

We received 113 completed surveys (response rate = 23.5%). Of the cohort, 2.7% reported that their agency always offers transfusions, 40.7% reported sometimes offering transfusions, and 54.9% reported never offering transfusions. In multivariable analyses, factors associated with offering transfusions included nonprofit ownership (OR 5.93, 95% CI, 2.2-15.2) and daily census >50 patients (OR 3.06, 95% CI, 1.19-7.87). Most respondents (76.6%) identified lack of transfusion access in hospice as a barrier to hospice enrollment for blood cancer patients. The top intervention considered as "very helpful" for increasing enrollment was additional reimbursement for transfusions (72.1%).

CONCLUSION

In this national sample of hospices, access to palliative transfusions was severely limited and was considered a significant barrier to hospice use for blood cancer patients. Moreover, hospices felt increased reimbursement for transfusions would be an important intervention. These data suggest that hospice providers are supportive of increasing transfusion access and highlight the critical need for innovative hospice payment models to improve end-of-life care for patients with blood cancers.

Access to High-Quality Hospice Care in a For-Profit World

Evidence supporting the relief of suffering and improved end-of-life care provided by hospice is in contrast with recent media reports of cases of poor-quality care driven by profit-motivated hospices. This commentary presents a brief history of hospice and potential solutions to address the current challenges affecting access to high-quality hospice care.

Association of Hospice Profit Status With Family Caregivers' Reported Care Experiences

Importance

Expansive growth in the US hospice market has been driven almost exclusively by an increase in for-profit hospices. Prior research found that, in contrast to not-for-profit hospices, for-profit hospices focus on delivering care to patients in nursing homes, provide fewer nursing visits, and use less skilled staff. However, prior studies have not reported on the associations of these differences in care patterns with hospice care quality. Patient- and family-centeredness is a core element of hospice care quality that is measured through surveys of care experiences.

Objective

To examine whether differences in profit status are associated with family caregivers' reports of hospice care experiences and assess factors that may be associated with observed differences in care experiences by profit status.

Design, Setting, and Participants

Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (CAHPS) Hospice Survey data from 653 208 caregiver respondents, reflecting care received from 3107 hospices between April 2017 and March 2019, were used for a cross-sectional examination of hospice care experiences by profit status. Data analysis was performed from January 2020 to November 2022.

Main Outcomes and Measures

Outcomes were case-mix-adjusted and mode-adjusted top-box scores for 8 measures of hospice care experiences, including communication, timely care, symptom management, and emotional and religious support, as well as a summary score averaging across measures. Linear regression examined the association between profit status and hospice-level scores, adjusting for other organizational and structural hospice characteristics.

Results

There were 906 not-for-profit and 1761 for-profit hospices with mean (SD) time in operation of 25.7 (7.8) years and 13.8 (8.0) years, respectively. Mean (SD) decedent age at death was 82.8 (2.3) years, similar for not-for-profit and for-profit hospices. The mean proportion of patients who were Black, Hispanic, and White was 4.9%, 0.9%, and 91.4% for not-for-profit hospices and 9.0%, 2.2%, and 85.4% for for-profit hospices, respectively. Family caregivers reported worse care experiences at for-profit hospices than at not-for-profit hospices for all measures. Significant differences in average hospice performance by profit status remained after adjusting for hospice characteristics. However, for-profit hospice performance varied, with 548 of 1761 (31.1%) for-profit hospices scoring 3 or more points below the national hospice average of overall performance and 386 of 1761 (21.9%) scoring 3 or more points above the average. In contrast, only 113 of 906 (12.5%) not-for-profit hospices scored 3 or more points below the average, and 305 of 906 (33.7%) scored 3 or more points above the average.

Conclusions and Relevance

In this cross-sectional study of CAHPS Hospice Survey data, caregivers of patients receiving hospice care reported substantially worse care experiences in for-profit than in not-for-profit hospices; however, there was variation in reported experiences among both types of hospices. Public reporting of hospice quality is important.

Hospice Glassdoor and CAHPS® Scores-Glassdoor Scores and Hospice Financial Characteristics Predict Hospice Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems Scores

BACKGROUND

Recent public data transparency on both decedent caregiver satisfaction and employee satisfaction is impacting the three most essential needs of any hospice, admitting hospice enrollees, attracting hospice professionals and delivering on quality.

AIM

Explore the relationship between Glassdoor hospice employee recommendation data, hospice financial characteristics, and Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (CAHPS®) scores among the 50 largest US hospices.

DESIGN

Retrospective data with multivariate regression analysis.

DATA SOURCES

Provider CAHPS hospice survey data from 2019-2020 and Glassdoor employee recommendation data.

RESULTS

Glassdoor Composite and CAHPS Composite were positively correlated (r = .469, p < .01). Glassdoor scores, profit status, and acquisition status predicted Hospice CAHPS scores and explained 44% of the variation in CAHPS Composite. Being a large, for-profit hospice in acquisition status each predicted lower CAHPS scores. Non-profit hospices had significantly higher Glassdoor and CAHPS scores than for-profit hospices. CAHPS Composite and CAHPS Star Rating have potential as global indicators to inform customers of a given hospice's overall quality on the Hospice Compare website of CMS.

CONCLUSIONS

Hospice leaders seeking improvements in CAHPS scores are encouraged to seek feedback on whether their own employees would recommend their hospice to a friend. Communication and responsiveness were the strongest indicators of overall hospice quality. Skelton hospice staffing models must give way to realistic models that value company culture and employee satisfaction. Hospice quality and hospice profits are not necessarily mutually exclusive. Future research should explore the difference in themes emerging from positive and negative online caregiver reviews.

Hospice Composition Based on Diagnosis is Associated with Caregiver-Reported Quality Measures

Context: Given that the composition of hospice patients' terminal diagnoses has become increasingly diverse, understanding whether hospices provide quality care to patients, regardless of disease, is important. However, data comparing diagnosis and caregiver-reported outcomes remain scarce. Objectives: To analyze the association between the composition of patients' terminal diagnoses and caregiver-reported quality measures. Methods: Using cross-sectional, publicly available data from the Centers for Medicare & Medicare Services (CMS), we analyzed data collected from 2015-2019. We conducted general linear model analyses to identify associations between hospice characteristics/practices and caregiver-reported outcomes. Results: Of the 2810 hospices, those that cared for a greater percentage of dementia patients had fewer caregivers, on average, who rated hospice a 9 or 10 (where 0 = low, 10 = high; β = -.094; 95% CI = -.147, -.038), reported they always received help for pain and symptoms (β = -.106, CI = -.156, -.056), and reported definitely having received the training they needed (β = -.151, CI = -.207, -.095). Those caring for more stroke patients had fewer caregivers, on average, who rated hospice a 9 or 10 (β = -.184, CI = .252, -.115), reported they always received help for pain and symptoms (β = -.188, CI = -.251, -.126), reported definitely having received the training they needed (β = -.254, CI = -.324, -.184), and reported that the hospice offered the right amount of emotional/spiritual support (β = -.056, CI = -.093, -.019). Conclusion: Hospices that cared for a greater proportion of dementia and stroke patients had poorer scores on caregiver-reported quality measures. These findings support efforts to identify mechanisms underlying these differences and to design strategies to ensure optimal outcomes for hospice patients regardless of diagnosis.

A national study of disenrollment from hospice among people with dementia

BACKGROUND

People with dementia (PWD) are at high risk for hospice disenrollment, yet little is known about patterns of disenrollment among the growing number of hospice enrollees with dementia.

DESIGN

Retrospective, observational cohort study of 100% Medicare beneficiaries with dementia aged 65 and older enrolled in the Medicare Hospice Benefit between July 2012 and December 2017. Outcome measures included hospice-initiated disenrollment for patients whose rate of decline ceased to meet the Medicare hospice eligibility guideline of "expected death within 6 months" (extended prognosis) and patient-initiated disenrollment (revocation). Hospice, regional, and patient risk factors and variation were assessed with multilevel mixed-effects logistic regression models.

RESULTS

Among 867,695 hospice enrollees with dementia, 70,945 (8.2%) were disenrolled due to extended prognosis and 43,133 (5.0%) revoked within 1-year of their index admission. There was substantial variation in hospice provider disenrollment due to extended prognosis (10th-90th percentile 4.5%-14.6%, adjusted median odds ratio (MOR) 1.86, 95% confidence interval (CI) 1.82, 1.91) and revocation (10th-90th percentile 2.5%-10.1%, MOR 2.09, 95% CI 2.03, 2.14). Among hospital referral regions (HRR), there was more variation in revocation (10th-90th percentile 3.5%-7.6%, MOR 1.4, 95% CI 1.34, 1.47) than extended prognosis (10th-90th percentile 7.0%-9.5%, MOR 1.23, 95% CI 1.18, 1.27), with much higher revocation rates noted in HRRs located in the Southeast and Southern California. A number of patient and hospice characteristics were associated with higher odds of both types of disenrollment (younger age, female sex, minoritized race and ethnicity, Medicaid dual eligibility, Medicare Part C enrollment), while some were associated with revocation only (more comorbidities, newer, smaller, and for-profit hospices).

CONCLUSIONS

In this nationally representative study of hospice enrollees with dementia, hospice disenrollment varied by type of hospice, geographic region, and patient characteristics including age, sex, race, and ethnicity. These findings raise important questions about whether and how the Medicare Hospice Benefit could be adapted to reduce disparities and better support PWD.

Hospice inpatient services provision, utilization, and financial performance

BACKGROUND

Hospice performance is an overlooked area in the health care field due to the difficulty of measuring quality of care and the infrequent quality inspection. Based on the daily reimbursement mechanism for different levels of hospice care, inpatient services provision could influence both hospice-level length of stay (LOS) and financial performance.

PURPOSE

The objective of this study was to explore the relationship between hospice inpatient services provision and hospice utilization and financial performance.

METHODOLOGY/APPROACH

A longitudinal secondary data set (2009-2013) was merged from three sources: (a) Hospice Cost Reports from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, (b) the Provider of Services files, and (c) the Area Health Resources Files. The dependent variable in this study was hospice average LOS and financial performance measured by total operating margin (TOM) and return on assets. The independent variable was hospice inpatient services' offering. Mixed-effects regression models were used in the multivariate regression analyses.

RESULTS

When comparing to hospices not providing inpatient services, offering inpatient services by staff was negatively related to average LOS (b = -0.063, p < .05) and TOM (b = -0.022, p < .05). The combination method with providing inpatient services by staff and under arrangement was negatively associated with return on assets (b = -0.073, p < .05).

CONCLUSION

Hospice inpatient services provision was associated with average LOS and financial performance.

PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS

Offering the inpatient services to patients by staff decreased average LOS and TOM. Hospice agencies may seek strategies to maintain their financial sustainability through outsourcing.

Will For-Profits Keep Up the Pace in the United States? The Future of the Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly and Implications for Other Programs Serving Medically Vulnerable Populations

The Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE) has provided, for more than 4 decades, high-quality, cost-effective medical and social care to older people in the United States under nonprofit ownership. Recent rulings by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS), however, will fundamentally change the initial intent and operation of the program. CMS's final rule (4168-F) removes the provision that PACE operators be nonprofit. This article provides the legislative background for the final ruling and critiques the study that was used to justify the removal of the nonprofit provision. Although the Balanced Budget Act of 1997 listed a number of requirements for evaluating for-profit PACE programs, the secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services did not follow them before establishing for-profit PACE sites as permanent providers. It also argues that the ruling was made without much evidence that for-profit compared to nonprofit operators can provide a similar level of quality of care, access, and cost-effectiveness and urges policymakers to increase regulatory accountability, given what we know about other shifts in profit status and health care.

Factors associated with the provision of inpatient care in hospices

BACKGROUND

Hospices provide end-of-life care to patients who have complex health care needs and whose symptoms are difficult to control. Understanding why some hospices offer inpatient hospice care to patients could bring more evidence for policy makers and researchers to focus on the role of inpatient care in hospice.

PURPOSE

The purpose of this study was to examine market and organizational factors that are associated with the provision of hospice inpatient care.

METHODOLOGY

This study used a retrospective, longitudinal design (2009-2013). The study sample was drawn from three data resources: the Area Health Resources Files, the Provider of Services files, and Hospice Cost Reports from Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. The sample size was 2,391 hospices or 10,999 hospice observations over 5 years. A generalized linear mixed-effects model was used to examine the association between market and organizational factors and hospice inpatient services offering.

RESULTS

On average, 94.59% of hospices offer inpatient services to patients. Proportion of adults who were over 65 years old (OR = 1.12) and Medicare-managed care penetration (OR = 1.02) were positively associated with the provision of hospice inpatient services. The number of hospitals with hospice program was negatively related to hospice inpatient services offering (OR = .95). Other factors such as nursing skill mix, volunteer dependence, and census region were also associated with inpatient services offering.

PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS

The age demand of hospice care and Medicare-managed care penetration are related to hospice inpatient services offering. Hospices located in the market with more competition from hospitals that offer hospice program are less likely to offer inpatient care.

Systematic review of the hospice performance literature

BACKGROUND

Hospice is the key provider of end-of-life care to patients. As the number of U.S. hospice agencies has rapidly increased, the performance has been scrutinized more deeply.

PURPOSE

To foster understanding of how hospice performance is measured and what factors are associated with performance, we conducted a systematic review of empirical research on hospice performance in the United States.

METHODS

Both structure-process-outcome and structure-conduct-performance frameworks were applied to categorize and summarize the hospice performance literature. A total of 36 studies were included in the systematic review.

RESULTS

Hospice agencies adopted different strategies (e.g., service provision strategy and staffing strategy) to improve performance. Two strategic approaches (innovation and volunteer usage) were associated with better outcomes. Hospice organizational factors, market environment, and patient characteristics were related to hospice strategic conduct and performance. Majority of hospice performance studies have examined the relationship between hospice structure and strategic conduct/process, with fewer studies focusing on structure performance and even fewer concentrating on strategy performance.

PRACTICE IMPLICATIONS

Patient, organizational, and market factors are associated with hospice strategic conduct and performance. The majority of the literature considered the impact of hospice organizational characteristics, whereas only a few studies included patient and market factors. The summarization of factors that may influence hospice performance provides insight to different stakeholders.

Factors Associated With Hospices' Nonparticipation in Medicare's Hospice Compare Public Reporting Program

BACKGROUND

To enhance the quality of hospice care and to facilitate consumers' choices, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) began the Hospice Quality Reporting Program, in which CMS posted the quality measures of participating hospices on its reporting website, Hospice Compare. Little is known about the participation rate and the types of nonparticipating hospices.

OBJECTIVE

To examine the factors associated with hospices' nonparticipation in Hospice Compare.

RESEARCH DESIGN

We analyzed data from the CMS 2016 Hospice Compare. "Nonparticipants" were those who did not submit any quality measure. With the data of the Provider of Service file, the Healthcare Cost Report Information System, and the Area Health Resources File, multivariate logistic regressions estimated the association between nonparticipants and hospice and market characteristics, including ownership, size, nurse staffing ratio, and market competition intensity.

RESULTS

Among the 4123 certified hospices subject to penalty from nonparticipation, 259 did not participate in Hospice Compare. California, New Mexico, Texas, and Wyoming had participation rates lower than 80%. Hospices that were for-profit, had no accreditation, had few nurses per patient day, provided no inpatient care, and were located in competitive markets were less likely to participate than other hospices.

CONCLUSIONS

Hospice Compare successfully motivated hospice in participating in the quality report program in most of states. For-profit hospices, hospices with less quality, and hospices located in competitive markets were less likely to participate. Further research is warranted to examine the quality of these nonparticipants, especially in the 4 states with a lower participation rate.

Social Workers' Perceptions of Job Satisfaction, Interdisciplinary Collaboration, and Organizational Leadership

To address job satisfaction, and therefore employment retention, of hospice social workers, this study examined how relationships with other members of the interdisciplinary hospice team and perceptions of hospice leadership may be associated with job satisfaction of hospice social workers. The sample of 203 hospice social workers was recruited by e-mailing invitations to hospice social workers identified by hospice directors in three states, use of online social media sites accessed by hospice social workers, and snowball sampling. Study measures included professional experience, hospice characteristics, interdisciplinary collaboration, perception of servant leadership, and intrinsic and extrinsic job satisfaction. Variables significant in the model for intrinsic satisfaction were perception of servant leadership, interdisciplinary collaboration, and feeling valued by the hospice physician. Variables significant in the model for extrinsic satisfaction were perception of servant leadership, interdisciplinary collaboration, feeling valued by the hospice physician, and number of social workers at the hospice. Interdisciplinary collaboration was more important for intrinsic job satisfaction and leadership style was more important for extrinsic job satisfaction. Profit status of the hospice, experience of the social worker, caseload size, and other variables were not significant in either model. These results support previous findings that leadership style of the hospice director and relationships with hospice colleagues are important for hospice social workers' job satisfaction. Such low-cost modifications to the hospice work environment, albeit not simple, may improve job satisfaction of hospice social workers.

Home Health Agency Characteristics and Quality Outcomes for Medicare Beneficiaries With Rehabilitation-Sensitive Conditions

OBJECTIVE

To examine associations between organizational characteristics of home health agencies (eg, profit status, rehabilitation therapy staffing model, size, and rurality) and quality outcomes in Medicare beneficiaries with rehabilitation-sensitive conditions, conditions for which occupational, physical, and/or speech therapy have the potential to improve functioning, prevent or slow substantial decline in functioning, or increase ability to remain at home safely.

DESIGN

Retrospective analysis.

SETTING

Home health agencies.

PARTICIPANTS

Fee-for-service beneficiaries (N=1,006,562) admitted to 9250 Medicare-certified home health agencies in 2009.

INTERVENTIONS

Not applicable.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES

Institutional admission during home health care, community discharge, and institutional admission within 30 days of discharge.

RESULTS

Nonprofit (vs for-profit) home health agencies were more likely to discharge beneficiaries to the community (odds ratio [OR], 1.23; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.13-1.33) and less likely to have beneficiaries incur institutional admissions within 30 days of discharge (OR, .93; 95% CI, .88-.97). Agencies in rural (vs urban) counties were less likely to discharge patients to the community (OR, .83; 95% CI, .77-.90) and more likely to have beneficiaries incur institutional admissions during home health (OR, 1.24; 95% CI, 1.18-1.30) and within 30 days of discharge (OR, 1.15; 95% CI, 1.10-1.22). Agencies with contract (vs in-house) therapy staff were less likely to discharge beneficiaries to the community (OR, .79, 95% CI, .70-.91) and more likely to have beneficiaries incur institutional admissions during home health (OR, 1.09; 95% CI, 1.03-1.15) and within 30 days of discharge (OR, 1.17; 95% CI, 1.07-1.28).

CONCLUSIONS

As payers continue to test and implement reimbursement mechanisms that seek to reward value over volume of services, greater attention should be paid to organizational factors that facilitate better coordinated, higher quality home health care for beneficiaries who may benefit from rehabilitation.

A Focus on the Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE)

For over four decades, the Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE) has been operated by nonprofit organizations. Research has demonstrated that nonprofit PACE provides quality, cost-effective community-based care to older adults who would otherwise require a nursing home level of care. Recently, the U.S. Secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services has authorized for-profit entities to operate PACE, contingent on their ability to demonstrate that they can provide care that is similar to nonprofit PACE with regard to access to care, quality of care, and cost-effectiveness. In 2013, a study was conducted to evaluate how PACE operates under for-profit versus nonprofit status. The results were presented to Congress which, in turn, authorized for-profit PACE providers. This article critiques the 2013 study, offers a comparison to for-profit hospice, and argues that at best there is not enough evidence to conclude that for-profit PACE provides the same quality of care as existing nonprofit operators.

Pain Assessment, Management, and Control Among Patients 65 Years or Older Receiving Hospice Care in the U.S

CONTEXT

Knowledge is limited regarding pain assessment and management practices, as well as pain-related outcomes in hospice care.

OBJECTIVES

To generate national estimates of pain assessment and management practices and outcomes of pain control among patients 65 years or older receiving hospice care in the U.S. and identify hospice discharge and agency characteristics predicting study outcomes.

METHODS

The 2007 National Home Health and Hospice Care Survey was analyzed. Multivariate logistic regressions were estimated to identify discharge and agency characteristics predicting guideline-concordant pain assessment and management practices and pain control outcomes.

RESULTS

A high percentage of discharges had pain assessment at admission (97%) and before discharge (93%); use of valid pain rating scales was relatively low (69% and 54% for first and last assessments, respectively). Almost 95% of patients received pain medication, but only 42% received nonpharmacologic therapies. About 70% of patients assessed with a valid pain scale saw improvement in the level of pain or remained free of pain from admission to discharge. Non-Hispanic blacks were less likely to have pain assessments, and Hispanics were less likely to receive opioid analgesics or to have pain-free status at discharge, compared with non-Hispanic whites. Patients receiving care from for-profit (vs. nonprofit) agencies were more likely to receive pain assessment with a valid scale before discharge but less likely to experience pain control or improvement.

CONCLUSION

Greater use of valid pain assessment scales and nonpharmacologic therapies constitutes areas for improvement in hospice care. Targeted interventions are needed to address disparities in pain care by patient race and/or ethnicity and agency ownership status.

Operational and Financial Performance of Newly Established Hospices

The objective of the study was to examine the financial and operating performance of newly established, free- standing hospices relative to existing, freestanding hospices. A nonparametric median test was used to compare the median values of operating and financial performance measures between newly established hospices and existing hospices. Operating and financial data were measured for the 2 groups using cost report data from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. The authors sampled 44 new, freestanding hospices and selected 312 freestanding existing hospices and analyzed their data over 2 years from 2002 to 2003. The study found that 91% of these new hospices were owned by for-profit organizations and were located in the southern region of the United States. New hospices served fewer patients; however, they had a longer length of stay compared to existing hospices. They offered fewer imaging services and radiation therapy services. New hospices generated significantly higher revenue but incurred significantly higher expenses. The results suggest that longer lengths of stay allow these newer hospices to increase revenue and improve overall profitability.

For-profit medicare home health agencies' costs appear higher and quality appears lower compared to nonprofit agencies

For-profit, or proprietary, home health agencies were banned from Medicare until 1980 but now account for a majority of the agencies that provide such services. Medicare home health costs have grown rapidly since the implementation of a risk-based prospective payment system in 2000. We analyzed recent national cost and case-mix-adjusted quality outcomes to assess the performance of for-profit and nonprofit home health agencies. For-profit agencies scored slightly but significantly worse on overall quality indicators compared to nonprofits (77.18 percent and 78.71 percent, respectively). Notably, for-profit agencies scored lower than nonprofits on the clinically important outcome "avoidance of hospitalization" (71.64 percent versus 73.53 percent). Scores on quality measures were lowest in the South, where for-profits predominate. Compared to nonprofits, proprietary agencies also had higher costs per patient ($4,827 versus $4,075), were more profitable, and had higher administrative costs. Our findings raise concerns about whether for-profit agencies should continue to be eligible for Medicare payments and about the efficiency of Medicare's market-oriented, risk-based home care payment system.

A Comprehensive Community-Based Model for Hospice Care

This study discusses the unique characteristics of a comprehensive community-based model for hospice care. The data demonstrate that community-based hospice programs serve a population composed primarily of Medicare patients 75 years and older. It also addresses the primary clinical diagnoses for hospice patients, which include lung cancer, cognitive disability, cerebrovascular disease, congestive heart failure, chronic airway obstruction, colon cancer, renal failure, and prostrate cancer. Finally, the study found that the primary caregiver for community-based hospice patients is the spouse, followed by other family members.

The Impact of Reported Hospice Preferred Practices on Hospital Utilization at the End of Life

BACKGROUND

The Affordable Care Act requires hospices to report quality measures across a range of processes and practices. Yet uncertainties exist regarding the impact of hospice preferred practices on patient outcomes.

OBJECTIVE

Assess the impact of 6 hospice preferred practices and hospice organizational characteristics on hospital utilization and death using the first national data on hospice preferred practices.

DESIGN

Longitudinal cohort study (2008-2011) of Medicare beneficiaries (N=149,814) newly enrolled in a national random sample of hospices (N=577) from the National Hospice Survey (84% response rate) and followed until death.

OUTCOME MEASURES

The proportion of patients at each hospice admitted to the hospital, emergency department (ED), and intensive care unit (ICU), and who died in the hospital after hospice enrollment.

RESULTS

Hospices that reported assessing patient preferences for site of death at admission had lower odds of being in the highest quartile for hospital death (AOR=0.36; 95% CI, 0.14-0.93) and ED visits (AOR=0.27; 95% CI, 0.10-0.76). Hospices that reported more frequently monitoring symptoms had lower odds of being in the highest quartile for ICU stays (AOR=0.48; 95% CI, 0.24-0.94). In adjusted analyses, a higher proportion of patients at for-profit compared with nonprofit hospices experienced a hospital admission (15.3% vs. 10.9%, P<0.001), ED visit (21.8% vs. 15.6%, P<0.001), and ICU stay (5.1% vs. 3.0%, P<0.001).

CONCLUSIONS

Hospitalization of patients following hospice enrollment varies substantially across hospices. Two of the 6 preferred practices examined were associated with hospitalization rates and for-profit hospices had persistently high hospitalization rates regardless of preferred practice implementation.

Are Hospice Admission Practices Associated With Hospice Enrollment for Older African Americans and Whites?

CONTEXT

Hospices that enroll patients receiving expensive palliative therapies may serve more African Americans because of their greater preferences for aggressive end-of-life care.

OBJECTIVES

Examine the association between hospices' admission practices and enrollment of African Americans and whites.

METHODS

This was a cross-sectional study of 61 North and South Carolina hospices. We developed a hospice admission practices scale; higher scores indicate less restrictive practices, that is, greater frequency with which hospices admitted those receiving chemotherapy, inotropes, and so forth. In separate multivariate analyses for each racial group, we examined the relationship between the proportion of decedents (age ≥ 65) served by a hospice in their service area (2008 Medicare Data) and admission practices while controlling for health care resources (e.g., hospital beds) and market concentration in the area, ownership, and budget.

RESULTS

Nonprofit hospices and those with larger budgets reported less restrictive admission practices. In bivariate analyses, hospices with less restrictive admission practices served a larger proportion of patients in both racial groups (P < 0.001). However, in the multivariate models, nonprofit ownership and larger budgets but not admission practices predicted the outcome.

CONCLUSION

Hospices with larger budgets served a greater proportion of African Americans and whites in their service area. Although larger hospices reported less restrictive admission practices, they also may have provided other services that may be important to patients regardless of race, such as more in-home support or assistance with nonmedical expenses, and participated in more outreach activities increasing their visibility and referral base. Future research should explore factors that influence decisions about hospice enrollment among racially diverse older adults.

Who Rules Home Care? The Impact of Privatization on Profitability, Cost, and Quality

This article explores the literature, including two recent studies, on whether home health agency (HHA) ownership type plays a significant role in agency quality, cost, and profitability. The literature is limited, except for the two recent studies that use a merged database created from the Medicare Home Health Compare and the 2010 Medicare home health cost reports databases. One study found statistically significant differences between proprietary and non-profit HHAs: Proprietary agencies have lower overall quality, higher profitability, higher costs per patient, and more visits per patient, with therapy visits accounting for a larger share of the total. However, the second study found that the explanatory value of ownership is limited, with the number of HHAs in the state and therapy visits as a percentage of total visits having a significant influence on cost and quality when combined with ownership compared with ownership alone. Policy, practice, and research implications are discussed.

Massage, Music, and Art Therapy in Hospice: Results of a National Survey

CONTEXT

Complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) provides clinical benefits to hospice patients, including decreased pain and improved quality of life. Yet little is known about the extent to which U.S. hospices employ CAM therapists.

OBJECTIVES

To report the most recent national data regarding the inclusion of art, massage, and music therapists on hospice interdisciplinary teams and how CAM therapist staffing varies by hospice characteristics.

METHODS

A national cross-sectional survey of a random sample of hospices (n = 591; 84% response rate) from September 2008 to November 2009.

RESULTS

Twenty-nine percent of hospices (169 of 591) reported employing an art, massage, or music therapist. Of those hospices, 74% employed a massage therapist, 53% a music therapist, and 22% an art therapist, and 42% expected the therapist to attend interdisciplinary staff meetings, indicating a significant role for these therapists on the patient's care team. In adjusted analyses, larger hospices compared with smaller hospices had significantly higher odds of employing a CAM therapist (adjusted odds ratio 6.38; 95% CI 3.40, 11.99) and for-profit hospices had lower odds of employing a CAM therapist compared with nonprofit hospices (adjusted odds ratio 0.52; 95% CI 0.32, 0.85). Forty-four percent of hospices in the Mountain/Pacific region reported employing a CAM therapist vs. 17% in the South Central region.

CONCLUSION

Less than one-third of U.S. hospices employ art, massage, or music therapists despite the benefits these services may provide to patients and families. A higher proportion of large hospices, nonprofit hospices, and hospices in the Mountain/Pacific region employ CAM therapists, indicating differential access to these important services.

Access to bereavement services in hospice

Hospice bereavement services, though often overlooked in hospice research, are an important area of study due not only to the potential value of bereavement support but also the emphasis placed on such services by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services. Moreover, access to these services is seldom understood or researched. Therefore, using the patient public use file of the 2007 National Home and Hospice Care Survey, we explored the relationships between patient, informal caregiver, and agency characteristics as well as discharges from hospice to gain perspective into bereavement service access to informal caregivers. Findings suggested that death at discharge from hospice may be an important moderator variable between access to hospice bereavement support and many other factors. However, even under controls for death at discharge, two agency characteristics remain significantly associated with access. Bereavement access tends to be more likely in agencies that provide only hospice care as opposed to other services, and in micropolitan agencies. Furthermore, death at discharge is less likely among African Americans, suggesting the value of enhanced culturally-appropriate and more targeted hospice care and hospice bereavement support for this population. Future research should explore the strategies used to effectively deliver bereavement services and how these strategies may benefit from targeted and culturally sensitive approaches.

A Descriptive Study of California Hospice Providers’ Perceptions of Public Reporting of Quality Data Using the Family Evaluation of Hospice Care Survey

The Affordable Care Act requires US hospices to report quality data to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) in 2013 with data eventually being made public. There may be some benefit to participating in a voluntary public-reporting program prior to public disclosure by CMS; therefore, we developed and conducted an electronic survey exploring California hospices’ perceptions of public reporting. The majority (78.1%) of respondents reported current use of the Family Evaluation of Hospice Care tool and a willingness to consider voluntary participation in a public-reporting program outside of what is being implemented by CMS (58.6%). Tax status of responding hospices was not predictive of a willingness to participate in a statewide public-reporting program of hospice quality in our study.

Are Consumers Satisfied With Medicare Home Health

This study is the first to examine how home health agency ownership and other determinants affect patient satisfaction with Medicare home health agency care. For the first time, data residing in three separate Medicare databases have been integrated for analysis. Multiple linear regression was used with independent variables that measure seven categories of home health agency characteristics and services: ownership type, costs, cost-related ratios, revenue, quality, years certified, and visits. Results show five variables statistically significant in a model predicting home health agency patient satisfaction; the two largest contributors are total home health costs and years of agency certification. The study gives policymakers and home health agencies insights into the key determinants of patient satisfaction and demonstrates the value of integrating multiple Medicare databases.

National hospice survey results: for-profit status, community engagement, and service

IMPORTANCE The impact of the substantial growth in for-profit hospices in the United States on quality and hospice access has been intensely debated, yet little is known about how for-profit and nonprofit hospices differ in activities beyond service delivery. OBJECTIVE To determine the association between hospice ownership and (1) provision of community benefits, (2) setting and timing of the hospice population served, and (3) community outreach. DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS Cross-sectional survey (the National Hospice Survey), conducted from September 2008 through November 2009, of a national random sample of 591 Medicare-certified hospices operating throughout the United States. EXPOSURES For-profit or nonprofit hospice ownership. MAIN OUTCOMES AND MEASURES Provision of community benefits; setting and timing of the hospice population served; and community outreach. RESULTS A total of 591 hospices completed our survey (84% response rate). For-profit hospices were less likely than nonprofit hospices to provide community benefits including serving as training sites (55% vs 82%; adjusted relative risk [ARR], 0.67 [95% CI, 0.59-0.76]), conducting research (18% vs 23%; ARR, 0.67 [95% CI, 0.46-0.99]), and providing charity care (80% vs 82%; ARR, 0.88 [95% CI, 0.80-0.96]). For-profit compared with nonprofit hospices cared for a larger proportion of patients with longer expected hospice stays including those in nursing homes (30% vs 25%; P = .009). For-profit hospices were more likely to exceed Medicare's aggregate annual cap (22% vs 4%; ARR, 3.66 [95% CI, 2.02-6.63]) and had a higher patient disenrollment rate (10% vs 6%; P &lt; .001). For-profit were more likely than nonprofit hospices to engage in outreach to low-income communities (61% vs 46%; ARR, 1.23 [95% CI, 1.05-1.44]) and minority communities (59% vs 48%; ARR, 1.18 [95% CI, 1.02-1.38]) and less likely to partner with oncology centers (25% vs 33%; ARR, 0.59 [95% CI, 0.44-0.80]). CONCLUSIONS AND RELEVANCE Ownership-related differences are apparent among hospices in community benefits, population served, and community outreach. Although Medicare's aggregate annual cap may curb the incentive to focus on long-stay hospice patients, additional regulatory measures such as public reporting of hospice disenrollment rates should be considered as the share of for-profit hospices in the United States continues to increase.

Palliative sedation versus euthanasia: an ethical assessment

The aim of this article was to review the ethical debate concerning palliative sedation. Although recent guidelines articulate the differences between palliative sedation and euthanasia, the ethical controversies remain. The dominant view is that euthanasia and palliative sedation are morally distinct practices. However, ambiguous moral experiences and considerable practice variation call this view into question. When heterogeneous sedative practices are all labeled as palliative sedation, there is the risk that palliative sedation is expanded to include practices that are actually intended to bring about the patients' death. This troublesome expansion is fostered by an expansive use of the concept of intention such that this decisive ethical concept is no longer restricted to signify the aim in guiding the action. In this article, it is argued that intention should be used in a restricted way. The significance of intention is related to other ethical parameters to demarcate the practice of palliative sedation: terminality, refractory symptoms, proportionality, and separation from other end-of-life decisions. These additional parameters, although not without ethical and practical problems, together formulate a framework to ethically distinguish a more narrowly defined practice of palliative sedation from practices that are tantamount to euthanasia. Finally, the article raises the question as to what impact palliative sedation might have on the practice of palliative care itself. The increasing interest in palliative sedation may reemphasize characteristics of health care that initially encouraged the emergence of palliative care in the first place: the focus on therapy rather than care, the physical dimension rather than the whole person, the individual rather than the community, and the primacy of intervention rather than receptiveness and presence.

Hospice for nursing home residents: does ownership type matter?

BACKGROUND

Currently, more than half of all nursing home residents use hospice at some point. Studies have shown benefits to hospice enrollment for patients; however, the literature on ownership differences in hospice care in general has indicated that for-profit hospices offer a narrower scope of services and employ fewer professional staff. Although nursing home staffing patterns have been shown to be essential to quality of care, the literature has not explored differences in number of patients per staff member for hospice care within nursing homes.

METHODS

We hypothesized that for-profit hospices would have a higher number of patients per staff member for home care workers (HCWs), registered nurses (RNs), and medical social workers (MSWs), and this relationship would be moderated by the proportion of hospice users living in nursing homes. Using data from the National Hospice Survey, a random sampling of all Medicare-certified hospices operating between September 2008 and November 2009, we identified 509 hospices that served individuals living in a nursing home, with 89 hospices having 50% or greater of their clients living in a nursing home.

RESULTS

Adjusted analysis indicated a higher number of patients per staff member for HCWs and RNs among for-profit hospices. Moreover, compared with nonprofit hospices, for-profit hospices with a high proportion of nursing home residents had 36 more patients per HCW (p=0.011) and 24 more patients per RN (p=0.033).

CONCLUSIONS

Staffing is an important indicator of hospice quality, thus our findings may be useful for anticipating potential impacts of the growth in for-profit hospice on nursing home residents.

Models of palliative care delivery in the United States

PURPOSE OF REVIEW

To summarize the current United States healthcare system and describe current models of palliative care delivery.

RECENT FINDINGS

Palliative care services in the USA have been heavily influenced by the public-private fee-for-service reimbursement system. Hospice provides care for 46% of adults at the end-of-life under the Medicare hospice benefit. Palliative care teams in hospitals have rapidly expanded to provide care for seriously ill patients irrespective of prognosis. To date, over two-thirds of all hospitals and over 85% of mid to large size hospitals report a palliative care team. With the passage of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010, healthcare reform provides an opportunity for new models of care.

SUMMARY

Palliative care services are well established within hospitals and hospice. Future work is needed to develop quality metrics, create care models that provide services in the community, and increase the palliative care workforce.

Strategic groups and outcomes in the US hospice care industry

PURPOSE

As a result of a drastic increase in new patients, two major shifts are occurring in the US hospice care industry: an increase in the number of for-profit providers, and hospices are increasing in size through acquisitions and mergers. Hospices are trying to both increase the number of innovative programs they offer and decrease their operating expenses to improve their margins and attract more patients. This study seeks to investigate if strategic groups exist within the industry as hospices try to become more innovative and efficient, which grouping factors are most significant, and to determine whether there is a relationship between group membership and performance.

DESIGN/METHODOLOGY/APPROACH

Cluster analysis and ANOVA are used to analyze data from 93 California hospices.

FINDINGS

Three strategic groups exist within the market, innovative practices significantly affect group membership, and innovation-oriented groups outperform others in terms of quality of care.

PRACTICAL IMPLICATIONS

Many hospices focus on innovation, and evidence suggests that continued pursuit of innovative practices is critical, whereas efficiency does not appear to have a significant impact on quality of care. Focus on such evidence-based practices is important for long-term success.

ORIGINALITY/VALUE

This is the first study to investigate strategic group formation in the hospice care industry.

US hospice industry experienced considerable turbulence from changes in ownership, growth, and shift to for-profit status

The US hospice industry, which provides palliative and supportive care to patients with terminal illness, has undergone substantial changes during the last decade. The magnitude of these changes has not been fully captured in previous studies or reports. In this longitudinal study of hospices active in Medicare during 1999-2009, we analyzed Provider of Services files to understand key shifts in the industry. We found evidence of substantial turbulence. One-fifth of Medicare-certified hospices active in 1999 had closed or withdrawn from the program by 2009, and more than 40 percent had experienced one or more changes in ownership. The most prominent trend was the shift in ownership type from nonprofit to for-profit ownership. Four out of five Medicare-certified hospices that entered the marketplace between 2000 and 2009 were for-profit. Hospices also became larger, as the proportion with 100 or more full-time employees doubled to 5 percent from 1999 to 2009. Although each of the Census regions had more hospices in 2009 than in 1999, the geographic distribution of hospices in the country changed, with proportionally more in the South and West. The impact of all of these changes on cost and quality of hospice care, as well as patient access, remains a critical area for future research.

Caring for grieving family members: results from a national hospice survey

BACKGROUND

A founding principle of hospice is that the patient and family is the unit of care; however, we lack national information on services to family members. Although Medicare certification requires bereavement services be provided, reimbursement rates are not tied to the level or quality of care; therefore, limited financial incentives exist for hospice to provide more than a minimal benefit.

OBJECTIVES

To assess the scope and intensity of services provided to family members by hospice.

RESEARCH DESIGN

We fielded a national survey of hospices between September 2008 and November 2009.

PARTICIPANTS

A national sample of US hospices with an 84% response rate (N=591).

MEASURES

Bereavement services to the family, bereavement services to the community, labor-intensive family services, and comprehensive family services.

RESULTS

Most hospices provided bereavement services to the family (78%) and to the community (76%), but only a minority of hospices provided labor-intensive (23%) or comprehensive (27%) services to grieving family members. Larger hospice size was positively and significantly associated with each of the 4 measures of family services. We found no significant difference in provision of bereavement services to the family, labor-intensive services, or comprehensive services by ownership type; however, nonprofit hospices were more likely than for-profit hospices to provide bereavement services to the community.

CONCLUSIONS

Our results show substantial diversity in the scope and intensity of services provided to families of patients with terminal illnesses, suggesting a need for clearer guidance on what hospices should provide to exemplify best practices. Consensus within the field on more precise guidelines in this area is essential.

Quality of palliative care at US hospices: results of a national survey

BACKGROUND

The National Quality Forum (NQF) identified hospice services as a national priority area for health care quality improvement and endorsed a set of preferred practices for quality palliative and hospice care. This study reports the first national data regarding hospices' self-reported implementation of the NQF preferred practices and identifies hospice characteristics associated with more comprehensive implementation.

METHODS

We conducted a national cross-sectional survey of a random sample of hospices (n=591; response rate, 84%) from September 2008 to November 2009. We evaluated the reported implementation of NQF preferred practices in the care of both patients and families.

RESULTS

The range of reported implementation of individual NQF preferred practices among hospices was 45% to 97%. Twenty-one percent of hospices reported having implemented all patient-centered preferred practices, 26% all family-centered preferred practices, and 10% all patient and family-centered preferred practices. In adjusted analyses, large hospices (100 or more patients per day) were significantly more likely than small hospices (<20 patients per day) to report having implemented all patient-centered preferred practices [odds ratio (OR)=2.46; 95% CI, 1.24, 4.90] and all family-centered preferred practices (OR=1.88; 95% CI, 1.02, 3.45). Similarly, chain-affiliated hospices were significantly more likely than free-standing hospices to report having implemented all patient-centered preferred practices (OR=2.45; 95% CI, 1.23, 4.87) and all family-centered preferred practices (OR=1.85; 95% CI, 1.01, 3.41).

CONCLUSIONS

Hospices' reported implementation of individual preferred practices for palliative and hospice care quality was high; however, reported comprehensive implementation of preferred practices was rare and may be difficult to achieve for small, free-standing hospices.

Association of hospice agency profit status with patient diagnosis, location of care, and length of stay

CONTEXT

Medicare's per diem payment structure may create financial incentives to select patients who require less resource-intensive care and have longer hospice stays. For-profit and nonprofit hospices may respond differently to financial incentives.

OBJECTIVE

To compare patient diagnosis and location of care between for-profit and nonprofit hospices and examine whether number of visits per day and length of stay vary by diagnosis and profit status.

DESIGN, SETTING, AND PATIENTS

Cross-sectional study using data from the 2007 National Home and Hospice Care Survey. Nationally representative sample of 4705 patients discharged from hospice.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES

Diagnosis and location of care (home, nursing home, hospital, residential hospice, or other) by hospice profit status. Hospice length of stay and number of visits per day by various hospice personnel.

RESULTS

For-profit hospices (1087 discharges from 145 agencies), compared with nonprofit hospices (3618 discharges from 524 agencies), had a lower proportion of patients with cancer (34.1%; 95% CI, 29.9%-38.6%, vs 48.4%; 95% CI, 45.0%-51.8%) and a higher proportion of patients with dementia (17.2%; 95% CI, 14.1%-20.8%, vs 8.4%; 95% CI, 6.6%-10.6%) and other noncancer diagnoses (48.7%; 95% CI, 43.2%-54.1%, vs 43.2%; 95% CI, 40.0%-46.5%; adjusted P < .001). After adjustment for demographic, clinical, and agency characteristics, there was no significant difference in location of care by profit status. For-profit hospices compared with nonprofit hospices had a significantly longer length of stay (median, 20 days; interquartile range [IQR], 6-88, vs 16 days; IQR, 5-52 days; adjusted P = .01) and were more likely to have patients with stays longer than 365 days (6.9%; 95% CI, 5.0%-9.4%, vs 2.8%; 95% CI, 2.0%-4.0%) and less likely to have patients with stays of less than 7 days (28.1%; 95% CI, 23.9%-32.7%, vs 34.3%; 95% CI, 31.3%-37.3%; P = .005). Compared with cancer patients, those with dementia or other diagnoses had fewer visits per day from nurses (0.50 visits; IQR, 0.32-0.87, vs 0.37 visits; IQR, 0.20-0.78, and 0.41 visits; IQR, 0.26-0.79, respectively; adjusted P = .002) and social workers (0.15 visits; IQR, 0.07-0.31, vs 0.11 visits; IQR, 0.04-0.27, and 0.14 visits; IQR, 0.07-0.31, respectively; adjusted P < .001).

CONCLUSION

Compared with nonprofit hospice agencies, for-profit hospice agencies had a higher percentage of patients with diagnoses associated with lower-skilled needs and longer lengths of stay.

In the business of dying: questioning the commercialization of hospice

This article critically questions the commercialization of hospice care and the ethical concerns associated with the industry's movement toward "market-driven medicine" at the end of life. For example, the article examines issues raised by an influx of for-profit hospice providers whose business model appears at its core to have an ethical conflict of interest between shareholders doing well and terminal patients dying well. Yet, empirical data analyzing the experience of patients across the hospice industry are limited, and general claims that end-of-life patient care is inferior among for-profit providers or even that their business practices are somehow unseemly when compared to nonprofit providers cannot be substantiated. In fact, non-profit providers are not immune to potentially conflicting concerns regarding financial viability (i.e., "no margin, no mission"). Given the limitations of existing empirical data and contrasting ideological commitments of for-profit versus non-profit providers, the questions raised by this article highlight important areas for reflection and further study. Policymakers and regulators are cautioned to keep ethical concerns in the fore as an increasingly commercialized hospice industry continues to emerge as a dominant component of the U.S. health care system. Both practitioners and researchers are encouraged to expand their efforts to better understand how business practices and commercial interests may compromise the death process of the patient and patient's family--a process premised upon a philosophy and ethical tradition that earlier generations of hospice providers and proponents established as a trusted, end-of-life alternative.

Geographic access to hospice in the United States

BACKGROUND

Despite a 41% increase in the number of hospices since 2000, more than 60% of Americans die without hospice care. Given that hospice care is predominantly home based, proximity to a hospice is important in ensuring access to hospice services. We estimated the proportion of the population living in communities within 30 and 60 minutes driving time of a hospice.

METHODS

We conducted a cross-sectional study of geographic access to U.S. hospices using the 2008 Medicare Provider of Services data, U.S. Census data, and ArcGIS software. We used multivariate logistic regression to identify gaps in hospice availability by community characteristics.

RESULTS

As of 2008, 88% of the population lived in communities within 30 minutes and 98% lived in communities within 60 minutes of a hospice. Mean time to the nearest hospice was 15 minutes and the range was 0 to 403 minutes. Community characteristics independently associated with greater geographic access to hospice included higher population density, higher median income, higher educational attainment, higher percentage of black residents, and the state not having a Certificate of Need policy. The percentage of each state's population living in communities more than 30 minutes from a hospice ranged from 0% to 48%.

CONCLUSIONS

Recent growth in the hospice industry has resulted in widespread geographic access to hospice care in the United States, although state and community level variation exists. Future research regarding variation and disparities in hospice use should focus on barriers other than geographic proximity to a hospice.

The Taste for Regulation in Long-Term Care

Concerns about the quality of long-term care have resulted in an extensive array of regulations governing provider behavior. This article reports the results of a survey of 1,147 long-term care specialists on issues related to the government’s performance in assuring quality and improving care. With the exception of providers, more than half of specialists ranked the quality of the average nursing home as fair or poor; home health agencies and even assisted-living facilities fared only somewhat better. Yet despite the perceived ineffectiveness of the current regime, the majority of specialists expressed a general willingness to continue pursuing more stringent and enhanced enforcement and to proceed down the same path with assisted-living facilities. Furthermore, while most were not sanguine about public reporting, the majority favored pay-for-performance, even though both rely on the same information. In addition to constituency group affiliation, differences in views derived largely from respondents’ ideological predispositions.

Providing hospice care to children and young adults: A descriptive study of end-of-life organizations

Over the past two decades, end-of-life organizations have served an increasing number of children and young adults and expanded services important to terminally ill youth, and yet we know little about these organizations. The purpose of this study was to describe the characteristics of end-of-life care organizations that admitted children and young adults to hospice care. Using data from the 2007 National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization (NHPCO) Survey, we conducted a descriptive analysis of operational, mission, market, and financial characteristics, and explored a sub-analysis by age group. Our analysis revealed that these organizations had similar profit status, ownership, and payer mix when compared to the hospice industry. However, they differed in agency type, referrals, organizational size, geographic location, team member caseload, and revenues. We also found important differences in organizations that provided hospice care by age groups (infants, toddler, school-age children, and adolescents/young adults) in geographic location, region, agency type, accreditation, and team member caseload. These findings have managerial and policy implications.