Hospice Community mounrs the loss of Mary Labyak, hospice innovater and founding HAN Board member. Click here for more info.

NHPCO Sends Letter to HHS on Essential Health Benefits Package. On January 10th, Don Schumacher sent a letter to HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, providing NHPCO’s views on the inclusion of hospice coverage in the Essential Health Benefits package called for under the PPACA. Don’s letter was in response to recently released Institute of Medicine (IOM) report as well as an HHS bulletin issued in December 2011. It is anticipated that the issue will also be subject to a Notice of Proposed Rule Making in the coming months. View the letter here.

NHPCO weighs in with Congressional ‘Super Committee’. On August 30th, Don Schumacher sent a letter on behalf of the hospice community to the bipartisan group of legislators tasked with further reducing the federal budget by $1.5 trillion. Since Medicare providers are once again on the chopping block, Don’s message was simple and clear - - hands off of hospice! The letter also addressed growth in the hospice community in the past decade. Click here to read the letter.

Resolution Reached on Deficit. Congress reached an agreement on the deficit and budget on 8/2/11. Click here to read how this will affect hospice.