What Services Does Medicare Cover?
Medicare covers the following hospice services for your terminal illness and related conditions:
- Nursing care
- Medical equipment and supplies related to the management of the terminal illness, such as wheelchairs or walkers
- Prescription medications to relieve pain and control symptoms that are related to the management of the terminal illness
- Hospice aide for personal care
- Social services for patient and family
- Short-term inpatient care, if required, to control pain and symptoms
- Respite care, if required, to relieve primary caregiver
- Volunteer support for patient and family
- Spiritual counseling and bereavement support
- Physician and nurse practitioner services
What About Coverage For Other Illnesses?
Medicare continues to pay in the usual way for medical care not related to the patient’s terminal diagnosis.
What Is Required To Receive Medicare Hospice Benefits?
You can get Medicare hospice benefits when you meet all of the following conditions:
- You are eligible for Medicare Part A (hospital insurance)
- Your doctor and the hospice medical director certify that you are terminally ill and have six months or less to live if your illness runs its normal course
- You sign a statement choosing hospice care for your terminal illness. Medicare will still pay for covered benefits for any health problems that are not related to your terminal illness
- You receive care from a Medicare approved hospice program. Blue Summit and Palliative Care is a Medicare-certified hospice program
For More Information
If you or someone you know would benefit from the hospice program, discuss this with your physician or call Blue Summit and Palliative Care. Patients can be referred by a physician, family member, social worker, or case manager.
All referrals will be verified as to hospice appropriateness by consultation with the primary care physician.
Paying For Hospice Care
The hospice staff shall ensure that no person on the grounds of race, color, national origin, handicap, or ability to pay is excluded from participation in, denied benefits of, or otherwise subjected to discrimination from the provision of any hospice care or service.
Medicare covers the full cost of hospice care for terminally ill individuals who choose the hospice benefit and agree to stop seeking curative treatments. Most private insurance plans also cover hospice care and reimbursements vary by plan.
Blue Summit and Palliative Care never turns away a terminally ill individual because of an inability to pay for our services. We rely on support from the community and donations made to the Blue Summit and Palliative Care Foundation to provide our non-reimbursed care.
Blue Summit and Palliative Care provides care to anyone facing a serious life-limiting illness. If you are wondering about hospice care, call Blue Summit and Palliative Care. Calling is not a commitment but rather conversation about your options.