For Immediate Release:
November 24, 2008                                                       

NHPCO Continues Working to Stop Cuts to Hospice

Court Dismisses Law Suit Against CMS

(Alexandria, Va) –On September 5, 2008, the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization filed suit against both the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) to block implementation of that portion of a Final Rule promulgated by CMS designed to phase out the budget neutrality adjustment factor (BNAF). Today, the federal District Court for the District of Columbia dismissed the law suit on procedural grounds without reaching the substantive merits of NHPCO's claims. 

The ruling, from U.S. District Court Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotell, was based on its view that, before the court addresses the merits of the arguments presented in NHPCO's law suit, CMS should first be given the opportunity to consider those claims in an administrative appeal by affected hospices. (Download the court's ruling - PDF.)

“NHPCO is currently considering all of the available legal and administrative options,” said J. Donald Schumacher, NHPCO president and CEO. “We know that these cuts will lead to the reduction of services for dying Americans and their family caregivers or even the possible closing of hospice programs.”

“While we had hoped that the court would be able to make a decision to settle the suit now, we do understand that the court must allow the government the appropriate process for the case,” noted Jonathan Keyserling, executive director of the Alliance for Care at the End of Life. “However, NHPCO and the Alliance for Care at the End of Life will continue to aggressively work to stop what are essentially cuts to hospice’s reimbursement rates. This includes ongoing efforts to rally Congressional support for hospice.”

Since September two pieces of legislation to delay the hospice rate cuts have garnered the bipartisan, bicameral support of 160 Members of Congress.

“This rare bipartisan support shows a will in Congress tostep in and protect patients by fighting to protect hospice for future generations,” says Keyserling. “We will continue our efforts to urge lawmakers and the new administration to act on a solution for hospice. High quality, compassionate end-of-life care needs champions now more than ever.”

“NHPCO and the Alliance have been working aggressively to have the nation’s unified hospice community and its many supporters make their voices heard in support of quality, compassionate care at the end of life,” said Schumacher. “More than 70,000 messages went to Capitol Hill in the past several months and we will continue to galvanize the hospice community to help strengthen support for the dying.”

Independent research has shown that hospice saves the Medicare system money. According to an independent 2007 Duke University study, hospice saves Medicare an average of $2,300 per patient, amounting to a total savings of about $2 billion a year.  Research has also shown that hospice care is highly rated by family members of hospice patients, and enables the patient to die at home in most cases.

Considered to be the model for high-quality care at the end of life, hospice involves a team-oriented approach to care that includes expert medical attention, pain-and-symptom management, and emotional and spiritual support. The quality of a person’s life is emphasized, not the duration. Moreover, services and support are provided to family caregivers, in addition to the patient.

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Contact:
Angie Montes
NHPCO Director of Public Policy
703/647-5163

NHPCO has released new facts and figures about hospice care in the U.S.

Consumers will find more information on hospice and palliative care, caregiving, and advance care planning on NHPCO’s Caring Connections site, www.caringinfo.org or by calling the HelpLine at 1-800-658-8898.

NHPCO is the oldest and largest nonprofit membership organization representing hospice and palliative care programs and professionals in the United States. NHPCO’s mission is to lead and mobilize social change for improved care at the end of life, www.nhpco.org.

The Alliance for Care at the End of Life, a 501(c)4 organization, was created by the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization (NHPCO) in April of 2007 to provide a more aggressive and comprehensive advocacy voice that will serve the entire field and, ultimately, one of America's most vulnerable populations - those nearing the end of life, www.afceol.org.