Home Health & Hospice Week

Nonprofit hospices are on the move.

As a large health system shuts down its hospice operations in Arizona, a publicly traded chain builds its presence in the state.

The Pennant Group Inc. has acquired Southwestern Palliative Care and Hospice in Yuma, the Eagle, Idaho-based company says in a release. Pennant, through its subsidiaries, operates 103 home health and hospice agencies and 51 senior living communities in 14 states.

Meanwhile, nonprofit Banner Health is shutting down its hospice program and transitioning its patients and staff to the likewise nonprofit Hospice of the Valley, the Phoenix hospice says on its website. In 2022, Banner Hospice served more than 1,802 patients in the Phoenix and Tucson areas.

“Banner Health has chosen to focus on home health and ambulatory services going forward and has chosen HOV as its hospice provider,” Lin Sue Flood, director of community engagement for Hospice of the Valley, says on the provider’s website. HOV served 23,000 patients with nearly 1,700 employees last year.

“As like-minded nonprofits, our missions align,” Flood says. HOV has nine inpatient units, she adds.

3 Venerable Golden State Hospices Join Forces

Meanwhile in California, By the Bay Health, Mission Hospice & Home Care, and Hope Hospice are merging to become “the largest independent not-for-profit hospice network in Northern California,” they say in a release.

The hospices based in Larkspur, San Mateo, and Dublin “share a rich history and commitment to serving the Bay Area community,” says Mission Hospice CEO Dolores Miller in the release. They are among the oldest not-for-profit hospices in the state, they add.

The new organization plans to serve more than 1,100 patients per day, with more than 500 community volunteers and 600 multidisciplinary staff, according to the release. It will retain By the Bay’s affiliation with UCSF Health.

The merger “secures access to additional quality resources and services” and creates “a stronger combined organization,” Hope Hospice CEO Jennifer Hansen says.

All three organizations will continue to operate under their current names and branding, but Mission Hospice & Home Care and Hope Hospice will soon add the designation, “an affiliate of By the Bay Health” to their brands, reports The Almanac newspaper.