‘Alpha’ testing will begin in the spring. Hospices interested in testing out the new HOPE assessment tool haven’t missed their chance yet. Hospice Outcomes & Patient Evaluation contractor Abt Associates has extended the application period to “alpha test” the tool to Feb. 21. “We will notify each applicant on or about 3/5/2020 whether they have or have not been selected to participate in the HOPE alpha test,” Abt says in a message to providers. Testing is scheduled to occur in the spring. Plus: The report from the Technical Expert Panel meeting in November on the Hospice Outcomes & Patient Evaluation tool should be published in “the next few months,” a Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services official said in the agency’s Jan. 8 Open Door Forum for home care and hospice providers. You can consult two HOPE education tools posted in December, a one-page “fundamentals” sheet and a three-page Frequently Asked Question Sheet, at www.cms.gov/Medicare/Quality-Initiatives-Patient-Assessment-Instruments/Hospice-Quality-Reporting/HOPE — scroll down to the “Downloads” section.