Breaking News: Various posts about the CMS FY26 Wage Index Final Rule
Compiled by Hospice & Palliative Care Today; Joy Berger; 8/2/25
Finally. The financial Final Rule arrived. What do you need to know and do? How are hospice leaders responding? We've compiled these for you to go directly to various sources to find what you need.

• CMS FY 2026 Hospice Wage Index FINAL Rule posted in Federal Register, 
• Hospice & Palliative Care News Today - Breaking News 8/1/25
• Links to the full CMS Final Rule with summary descriptions for Payment Update, Wage Index Values, Cap amount, Physician member of the IDG, Face-to-face attestation, by Judi Lund Person 
• Fact Sheet - FY 2025 Hospice Wage Index and Payment Rate Update Final Rule CMS-1835-F
• CMS.gov; 8/1/25
• Fact Sheet for the Final Rule 
• Breaking: Hospices to Get 2.6% Pay Raise for 2026
• Hospice News; by Jim Parker; 8/1/25
• Jim notes, "CMS seems set on an Oct. 1 implementation date for the Hospice Outcomes and Patient Evaluation (HOPE) tool quality measurement system, despite calls for a delay. The final rule did not make any changes to the transition deadline."
• National Alliance for Care at Home Responds to FY 2026 Hospice Final Rule
• National Alliance for Care at Home; Press Release; 8/1/25
• Statement by Dr. Steve Landers, CEO of the Alliance, includes: "Despite responsiveness in other areas, the Alliance is deeply disappointed that CMS did not heed recommendations and delay the October 1, 2025 implementation of the Hospice Outcomes and Patient Evaluation (HOPE) tool nor waive the timeliness completion requirement for HOPE record submission."
• Response to CMS FY26 Hospice Final Rule, by Tom Koutsoumpas, NPHI Founder & CEO
• National Partnership for Healthcare and Hospice Innovation (NPHI), 8/2/25
• Statement by Tom Koutsoumpas, NPHI Founder & CEO includes, "NPHI is pleased to see CMS confirm a payment rate increase for hospices across the US. ... At the same time, nonprofit, mission-driven, community-based hospice organizations continue to face real financial and workforce pressures as they work to deliver high-quality, person-centered care."
• FY2026 Hospice Wage Index Rule - LeadingAge
• LeadingAge.org, Serial Post ranging from 4/11/25 to current
• This series of posts shows the progression of Proposed Rules and Comments preceding this Final Rule

Chapters Health System expands care in Richmond, VA and surrounding counties 
PR Newswire; by Chapters Health System; 7/31/25 
Chapters Health System, the nation's leading chronic illness innovator and largest nonprofit hospice provider, announces the opening of its newest program offering comprehensive hospice services and grief support to Richmond, VA – and the surrounding counties of Chesterfield, Goochland, Hanover, Henrico and Powhatan. Operating under Chapters Health Hospice, this new program will leverage the resources, infrastructure, and best practices of the nation's largest nonprofit network, while remaining grounded in the leadership of a team that is deeply rooted in the Richmond community. ... The opening of Chapters Health Hospice in Richmond, VA expands the Chapters Health System presence in the state following the 2023 affiliation of Capital Caring Health, which serves the Northern Virginia Region.

Hospice of Humboldt expands services 
Redwood News, Eureka, CA; 7/31/25 
... Through a fundraising effort called the Compassionate Growth Campaign, Hospice of Humboldt was able to raise $750,000, enough to recruit another team of caregivers and double the capacity of the hospice house. “It was a heavy lift for our organization. We recruited and trained an additional 19 staff members,” Keating said. Doctor Charles Knoll, the medical director on campus, walks families through the process. 

Nathan Adelson Hospice celebrates ‘Make A Will’ Month: The trusted hospice facility to offer free will-planning resources throughout the month of August 
Nevada Business; by Nathan Adelson Hospice; 8/1/25 
... For the month of August, Nathan Adelson Hospice aims to help inspire individuals to recognize the people closest to them in their lives, articulate their final desires, and ensure that all wishes are granted when the time comes, by offering a free resource, FreeWill. This resource aims to guide the community through the necessary steps of outlining a will and handling all wishes with dignity and care. “At Nathan Adelson Hospice, we understand that topics surrounding end-of-life care are always challenging. However, we believe in the power of communication and planning ahead,” says Lori Towsend, Executive Director. 

Treasure Coast Hospice announces endowment for pediatric patients 
WQCS News, NPR for the Treasure Coast, Stuart, FL; by Justin Breckenridge; 7/19/25 
The Treasure Coast Hospice Foundation has established a new endowment honoring local philanthropist Marlene K. Filer and her long-standing commitment to children’s health programs in Martin County. ... The Marlene K. Filer Celebrities Fore Kids Endowment will support children and families receiving care through the organization’s Little Treasures Pediatric Program. The program provides comprehensive support for children facing life-limiting illnesses. Filer, founder of Celebrities Fore Kids, has raised more than $3 million since 1997 to support children’s services throughout the region. 

Study reveals how medication side effects can lead to dangerous medication cycles in adults 65+ 
McKnights Long-Term Care News; by Donna Shryer; 7/31/25 
When doctors treat drug side effects as new illnesses, older adults may be prescribed even more medications — a cycle known as a “prescribing cascade.” A new study says this prescribing cycle can increase the risk of harm. A prescribing cascade example cited in the research involves older patients taking calcium channel blockers for blood pressure control, which can cause ankle swelling side effects. Instead of first adjusting the blood pressure drug, some doctors immediately prescribe a diuretic to reduce the swelling — which for some, can create an unnecessary drug pair.

Burnout eases for doctors at every career stage as support rises 
American Medical Association (AMA); by Sara Berg; 7/22/25 
Physician burnout is showing promising signs of decline, according to exclusive survey data from the AMA. [Measures] of job satisfaction and feeling valued in the workplace are on the rise—an encouraging shift that suggests meaningful progress in efforts to support physician well-being.  ... Nearly 18,000 responses from physicians across 43 states were received from more than 100 health systems and organizations that participated in the AMA Organizational Biopsy® last year. The AMA national physician comparison report—which is exclusive data to the AMA that is not published anywhere else—reflects 2024 trends on six key performance indicators—job satisfaction, job stress, burnout, intent to leave an organization, feeling valued by an organization and total hours spent per week on work-related activities ... 

Combining clinical insight and data-driven expertise: The case for morning huddles in primary care 
HEAL Security; by Becky Trotter and Aliya Ali; 7/1/25 
The daily huddle, also called a morning huddle, is a brief standup meeting commonly associated with inpatient and surgical care. In these settings, safety is the predominant focus of the meeting. However, the same idea can be used in primary care settings to get care teams ready for the patients scheduled for that day. Morning huddles are an opportunity to merge clinical knowledge with data and analytics to help ensure primary care teams are aligned and specific care needs are recognized before patients walk into the practice. 
Editor's Note: In hospice, various forms of morning huddles are not new. In the 1990s at Hospice & Palliative Care of Louisville, we began each day with voicemail communications among the entire team—critical for responding to overnight deaths or urgent patient needs. Today’s tech improves the process, but the goal remains: timely, coordinated care. Is your hospice keeping up? 

A hospice volunteer has a fascinating new take on people's most common deathbed regret 
Upworthy; by Cecily Knobler; 8/1/25 
... Over the years, many hospital and hospice workers have paid close attention to what people who are on their deathbeds say. What they're most proud of, and yes, what are their main regrets. ... [This author refers to] Jancee Dunn's New York Times article, "3 Lessons for Living Well, from the Dying." In it, she discusses her friend who is a hospice volunteer. "She hears one regret over and over from patients: letting relationships wither. They wish that they had made more plans with good friends, or they thought about getting back in touch with an old buddy, and talked themselves out of it." ...  One wrote,"My mother always told me, 'Your friends will get you through life.'"
Editor's Note: What friend do you want to reach out to, today? 

HHS sets its sights on $50b in cost savings: Medicare payments to nonhospice providers potentially under fire 
JD Supra; by Taylor Henderson, Callan Stein, Rebecca Younker; 7/31/25 
In May 2025, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) Office of Inspector General (OIG) published a review, titled " Potential Cost Savings HHS Programs – HHS Actions," which provided some insight into the OIG's direction to accomplish the Trump administration's stated goal of cutting federal spending. This review spans 35 reports, adding up to $50 billion in potential cost savings — including a reported $6.6 billion in potential savings by preventing Medicare payments for nonhospice items or services furnished to active hospice beneficiaries (nonhospice payments). When a beneficiary qualifies for and elects hospice benefits, the beneficiary signs a statement choosing hospice care over other Medicare-covered treatments for their terminal illness, and the hospice provider is paid a daily, per diem rate to provide these comprehensive services. With nonhospice payments accounting for a significant portion of HHS's potential savings, providers across the health care industry — including nursing and long-term care facilities, hospice and home health agencies, hospitals, individual providers, pharmacies, and medical equipment distributors — will need to be ready for the OIG's possible next steps.

St. Croix Hospice to acquire Mayo Clinic Health System hospice operations in Northwest and Southwest Wisconsin
WVNews West Virginia's News; Press Release by St. Croix Hospice; 8/1/25 
St. Croix Hospice and Mayo Clinic Health System (MCHS) have entered into a definitive agreement for St. Croix Hospice to acquire MCHS's hospice operations in Northwest and Southwest Wisconsin. The agreement is subject to regulatory approval and is expected to close later this quarter. The organizations have been longstanding partners in Midwest care, with St. Croix Hospice serving as a leading agency for hospice patients referred outside MCHS.

They asked, "Why is it important to be kind?" 

I said, "Because we walk past hundreds of people every day and none of them wear signs that say, 'I'm grieving,' 'I'm exhausted,' or 'I'm barely holding it together.' But they're everywhere. Kindess might be the only softness they receive today. 

~ Vex King