Home Health & Hospice Week

Effective Feb. 1, Louisiana will cut Medicaid payments for hospice care, along with other Medicaid cuts as part of severe state budget cuts, reports TheAdvertiser.com. Of course, hospice care in Louisiana will still be covered under Medicare, but there are thousands of Medicaid patients in the state seeking hospice care -- nearly 6,000 in fact.

The understanding is that nursing homes and HHAs will pick up the slack for Medicaid beneficiaries who can no longer enlist hospice services. Louisiana’s elimination of Medicaid payments for hospice care comes on the heels of the budget axe falling on charity hospitals in that state.