What is Hospice?
Hospice care is a specialized care designed to provide support to you and your loved ones during an advanced illness. Hospice care focuses on comfort and quality of life, rather than cure. The goal of hospice care is to enable you to have an alert, pain-free life … to live each day as fully as possible.
Who qualifies for hospice care?
- Patients with life threatening illnesses who can no longer benefit from curative treatment and generally have life expectancies of six months or less as determined by a physician.
What types of terminal illnesses are covered by hospice care?
Any illness where cure is currently not possible including:
- Cancer
- Respiratory Disease
- COPD (Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease)
- ALS (Lou Gherig’s Disease)
- Congestive Heart Failure
- Neurological Disorders
- End-stage Alzheimer’s Disease
- End-stage Liver and/or Kidney Disease
Who pays for hospice care?
- Hospice care is a benefit provided under Medicare, Medicaid and most types of private insurance.
How long is hospice care provided?
- Generally, hospice care is offered when a physician certifies that a patient has a life expectancy of six months or less. However, care can be extended if the patient’s condition warrants.