Literature Review

Quality domains in home-based pediatric hospice and palliative care: Adolescent and young adult perspectivesBMC Palliative Care; by Daniel H Grossoehme, Claire A Crawford, Jhansi Chandra Ellakula, Toluwalase Ajayi, Justin N Baker, Sarah Friebert, Lisa Humphrey, JillAnn Jarrell, Rachel Thienprayoon, Pamela S Hinds; 7/26Previous research with pediatric providers and caregivers concluded that pediatric hospice and palliative care have unique attributes. Not known is how adolescent hospice and palliative care patients understand quality palliative care. Methods: Semi-structured interviews with 10-26 year-olds who received home-based hospice and/or palliative care visits in the prior three years at six diverse sites in the United States. The results address an important gap by including adolescent/young adult patients' voices regarding delivery of home-based hospice and palliative care. Clinical implications include prioritizing and making time to build trusting relationships directly with the AYA, empowering them to participate in their care to the extent appropriate and prepare for transition to adult care when needed, providing support for family members, and training for all providers in generalist spiritual care.

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Trella Health releases 2026 Post-Acute Market Intelligence Report -- now fully interactive -- highlighting flattening Medicare Advantage growth and stabilizing FFS volumesPR Newsletter, Atlanta, GA; Press Release; 7/30/26Trella Health today released its Post-Acute Market Intelligence Report: 2026 Edition. ... The report examines the trends reshaping care delivery, referral patterns, and growth opportunities across the post-acute care market. ... The findings point to a post-acute market at a pivotal moment ... fee-for-service hospice admissions grew at their fastest rate in five years, while skilled nursing admissions recorded their first annual increase since 2022. ... [Additionally ...] 

VITAS zeroes in on acquisitions amid hospice moratorium Hospice News; by Holly Vossel; 7/29/26VITAS Healthcare is shifting more of its attention towards acquisitions during a six-month national moratorium on Medicare hospice enrollment. ... VITAS Healthcare is shifting more of its attention towards acquisitions during a six-month national moratorium on Medicare hospice enrollment. “The moratorium does influence our ability to apply for new CONs,” Wherley said during an earnings call on Wednesday. “The moratorium does not prevent us from moving forward with potential acquisitions, as long as the provider has been in service for three years. We’re actively reviewing any of those opportunities with markets that have a barrier to entry as our first interest. But we’re continuing to look at what other opportunities could potentially exist out there.”

Unity Golf Classic raises more than $80,000 to support compassionate hospice care, palliative care The Chamber Manitowoc County, De Pere, WI; Press Release; 7/28/2026Unity's 10th Annual Golf Classic brought together 124 golfers, 26 sponsors, 28 volunteers, and several community partners on Thursday, July 16, at Thornberry Creek at Oneida, raising nearly $80,000 to support Unity's mission of providing compassionate care and grief support throughout Northeast Wisconsin. Celebrating its tenth year, the Unity Golf Classic has become one of the organization's signature fundraising events, helping ensure patients and families receive expert, dignified care regardless of their ability to pay. "The Unity Golf Classic is about much more than a day on the course," said Alisa Gerke, Executive Director of Unity. "It is an opportunity for our community to come together in support of patients and families facing some of life's most difficult moments. We are incredibly grateful to every golfer, sponsor, volunteer, and donor whose generosity makes this event possible."

In New York, who will get to take advantage of medical aid in dyingPrism; by Ben Rappaport; 7/30/26For terminally ill patients, the new law [going into effect in New York on Aug. 5] offers the choice to end suffering. But cost, provider shortages, and medical distrust among communities of color could make the option less accessible. When Kiki Jackson first heard the phrase “medical aid in dying,” she scrunched her face in suspicion. Jackson, a 74-year-old lifelong resident of Harlem, was listening to a group discussion at a local senior center about New York’s new Medical Aid in Dying Act. For her and about a dozen other Black community members in attendance, the idea of terminally ill adults having the right to end their lives evoked troubling experiences with the medical system. ... Research aggregating over 20 years of data from 13 states and Washington, D.C., where similar laws are on the books, reveals that the people who’ve utilized medical aid in dying are overwhelmingly white, college-educated, and able to pay out of pocket.

National Alliance for Care at Home responds to FY 2027 Hospice Final RuleNational Alliance for Care at Home, Alexandria, VA; Press Release; 7/30/26The National Alliance for Care at Home (the Alliance) today responded to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) fiscal year (FY) 2027 Hospice Wage Index and Payment Rate Update final rule, which finalizes payment and regulatory changes under the Medicare hospice benefit. CMS finalized a 2.3% payment update to the Medicare hospice benefit, which continues to fall short of the rising labor and supply costs required to deliver high-quality hospice care. As demand for hospice services continues to grow, payment updates must more accurately reflect providers’ costs so that access to these essential services does not decline.  “CMS’s 2.3% payment update does not reflect the true cost of delivering hospice care and adds further strain to providers who are already stretched thin,” said Jennifer Sheets, CEO of the Alliance. “Compounding that pressure is a Service and Spending Variation Index built on a fundamentally flawed methodology that penalizes legitimate providers for non-hospice claims they have no visibility into nor control over, with no process to review or correct the data before it is made public. This is not a sound approach to program integrity. An inadequate payment update combined with an unreliable oversight tool creates a serious and growing burden for legitimate providers working to serve their communities.”