Home Health & Hospice Week

Confused about how the Medicare hospice and Veterans Administration benefits intersect? A new Medicare transmittal may help.

Change Request 13523 acknowledges “upon electing the Medicare hospice benefit, the beneficiary waives the right to Medicare payment for any Medicare services related to the terminal illness and related conditions during a hospice election. However, this does not preclude Veteran’s eligible beneficiaries from receiving services not included on the hospice plan of care, and which are furnished and paid under the beneficiary’s VA benefits, in addition to Medicare hospice services.”

Such VA services include “home-based primary care for illnesses other than the terminal illness,” the Feb. 22 transmittal clarifies. “Any services that are included on the hospice plan of care must be provided and paid under Medicare,” CMS adds in the four-page transmittal at www.cms.gov/files/document/ r12516bp.pdf.