Hospice: The New Primary Care

The new health care law offers incentives for hospitals to send re-admittable patients to hospice care as alternative means of health care. The new law provides many benefits to hospitals. For example, the law would provide a means for hospitals to avoid Medicare penalties associated with the re-admitting of patients within 30 days of discharging them. From the point of view of the hospital, this move is seen as having the potential to cut costs under Medicare in a large way. After all, the costs per day of a patient in hospice care under Medicare is only $151.

However, those who take the point of view of prospective patients argue that this policy is contrary to the goal of general health care law, which is to provide the best care for the patients. Some argue that the whole idea behind hospice care is to provide care for those whose life is about to end; therefore, these people conclude that hospice care might not be what is best for some patients because its goal are not to cure a patient but to aid patients who are about to die. 

See Kelly Kennedy, Hospice Being Marketed As A Cost-Cutter For Hospitals, USA Today, May 2012.

Special thanks to Jim Hillhouse (Professional Legal Marketing (PLM, Inc.)) for bringing this article to my attention.