Eli's Hospice Insider

Hospices have often gotten a pass from the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission — but not anymore. In its Dec. 12, 2013 meeting, MedPAC voiced approval for hospice payment recommendations that would cut Medicare rates in future years.

MedPAC calculated a Medicare margin of 8.7 percent in 2011, and expects hospices to have a 7.8 percent margin in 2014, staffer Kim Neuman said in the meeting.

But despite that drop, MedPAC plans to suggest a 0 percent inflation update for hospice rates in 2015. And as discussed in its November meeting, MedPAC plans to push Medicare to include hospice in its Medicare Advantage program (see Eli’s Hospice Insider, Vol. 7, No. 1).