CMS Website: SSVI Index; FY 2027 Final SSVI Overview; FY 2027 Final Hospice Wage Index
CMS website; compiled by Judi Lund Person; retrieved from the Internet 8/3/26 
Downloads on CMS website that provide additional information for the final rule; zip files [standard delivery format]

• Service and Spending Variation Index (SSVI): Data for every hospice in the country for SSVI calculations, both utilization and non-hospice spending metrics. The data provided is for both FY 2024 and FY 2025.
• FY 2027 Final SSVI Overview:  An overview of the Service and Spending Variability Index (SSVI), now included in the FY 2027 Final rule.
• FY 2027 Final Hospice Wage Index:  Wage index values for every county in the country.

Hospice's bad reputation amid fraud crisis will hurt patients, industry experts warn 
U.S. News & World Report; by Laurie Udesky and KFF Health News; 7/30/26
... “The fraud situation has done a lot of damage to the reputation of hospices overall and undone a lot of the progress that had been made in destigmatizing hospice,” said Lauren Hunt, an associate professor at the University of California-San Francisco’s Philip R. Lee Institute for Health Policy Studies who focuses on hospice care. “Policymakers should pursue targeted strategies that root out fraud and abuse without overburdening the many providers who are doing the right thing.” ... Hunt said she’s heard from California healthcare providers who are reluctant to refer patients to hospice because they’re unsure the patients will receive high-quality care and from patients who don’t know which hospice providers they can trust. 

Delivering compassionate care in an evolving and challenging industry
Hospice of the Valley - West, Peoria, AZ; Press Release; 8/4/26
... Over nearly five decades, Hospice of the Valley-West (HOV-West) has served our community and been a national leader in end-of-life care. We are committed to excellent clinical care along with being strong advocates of regulatory compliance and proponents of responsible stewardship of public resources. This commitment is shown in a number of ways: HOV was ranked among the top three hospices in the nation for high-quality care. ... An OIG third-party contractor audited 100 hospice claims for care provided during the first two years of the COVID-19 PHE. The OIG praised HOV-West for strong internal controls, policies and procedures. During the review, their third-party auditor agreed with 85 records, denying 15 records. In conversation with the OIG, they stated that this represents good results. However, HOV-West strongly disagrees with the 15 denials and we believe they will be overturned through the review and appeal process. ... The OIG report can be read here.

Swimmers raise $18,000 for hospice 
North Country Now; by Cheryl Shumway; 8/3/26
Dozen of swimmers ranging in age from four to senior citizens swam in the 16th annual Swim a Mile for Hospice at Norwood Beach August 1. Over $18,000 was raised for Hospice of St. Lawrence Valley. ... Ruth Fishbeck, Executive Director at Hospice and Palliative Care of St. Lawrence Valley said, “It is so nice to have so many families here. It is outside, community-minded and supports a good cause,” she said. ... Teresa Stone, in her 15th year in the Swim a Mile for Hospice,  had a special reason to participate this year. “I am swimming in honor of my mother, Barbara Towne, of Canton, who I lost last December. I can’t imagine not having Hospice. It gave me comfort to have someone guiding me with her care,” said Stone. ... Funds raised support hospice care, grief counseling, bereavement programs and community education services.

Hospice of Western Ky. hosts largest Camp Erin for grieving youth
The Messenger, Owensboro, KY; by The Messenger Staff; 8/4/26
Hospice of Western Kentucky recently welcomed 55 children to its largest Camp Erin to date, providing a free overnight camp experience for young people grieving the loss of a loved one, according to a release. The camp was held July 31 through Aug. 2 at Gasper River Catholic Youth Camp and Retreat Center in Bowling Green. This marked the fifth year Hospice of Western Kentucky has hosted Camp Erin for children ages 6 to 17. Camp Erin is offered at no cost to families through support from Eluna, Hospice of Western Kentucky and the New York Life Foundation, the release stated.

Schoolgirl's response to being told about dad's terminal cancer 
BBC; by Lauren Hirst; 7/12/26 
 When Chris Capstick was diagnosed with cancer three years ago, his family made the decision not to use the word c-word in the house. Instead the disease was known as "daddy's little monsters" for the benefit of his two youngest children. ... "It was really, really hard," said the 30-year-old, who works as an arts coordinator for young people but has taken time away to support her husband. ... "Having a six-year-old and a two-year-old, we didn't really know how to navigate it." This is when the idea of writing a rhyming storybook with their eldest daughter Isabella, who is now aged six, was born. "We thought what a great thing to do little cartoon monsters in a way that aren't scary," said Lauren. ... Isabella wanted to write the book from her own perspective with lots of colorful illustrations on each page.   

What hospice care really means to a grieving family
KevinMD.com; by Ton La, Jr., MD, JD; 8/3/26
Before my grandfather entered hospice, I believed it was where physicians sent patients to die. I saw it as the end of treatment, a quiet admission that medicine had given up. It was only through watching my grandfather’s final years that I came to understand hospice differently: not as the abandonment of care, but as one of its most compassionate forms. ... On Christmas morning, my uncle called to tell me my grandfather had fallen into a coma. His physicians urged us to say our goodbyes. When I arrived, the room was filled with family members offering prayers, and our rabbi came. Sitting beside him, I held his hand and prayed with everyone else. He passed away, and my entire world fell apart. ...   

Who worked with Brian Rowan? Sales representatives and medical providers allegedly joined nationwide wound-graft network
Before It's News, Phoenix, AZ; 8/4/26 
Prosecutors describe Alexandra Gehrke, Jeffrey King, affiliated medical businesses, unnamed sales representatives, and healthcare providers as participants within an alleged kickback-driven network targeting elderly and terminally ill patients across the United States. ... Hospice enrollment does not make advanced wound care automatically inappropriate because terminally ill patients can require interventions reducing pain, drainage, infection, odor, exposed tissue, or other symptoms affecting comfort and dignity. Prosecutors nevertheless allege that representatives deliberately visited hospice facilities because elderly beneficiaries with insurance coverage and persistent wounds offered continuing opportunities for expensive applications, even when meaningful healing remained clinically improbable.

Addus on the hunt for M&A deals
Hospice News; by Jim Parker; 8/4/26
Addus Homecare (Nasdaq: ADUS) is hungry for acquisitions, with home care and skilled home health at the top of the menu. The company is seeking to build density and expand into new markets as it works to develop stronger relationships with Managed Care Organizations and other payers, according to Chairman and CEO Dirk Allison. “We had cash on hand of approximately $100 million [in Q2]. With our strong cash flow in the second quarter, we reduced our bank debt to $64.3 million, leaving us with the financial flexibility to consider larger acquisition opportunities as we continue to pursue expansion of our market reach and increasing our geographic density,” Allison said in an earnings call.

New York imposes six-month moratorium on new home care agencies, adding to national trend
McKnights Home Care; by John Roszkowski; 8/3/26
New York has become the latest state to impose a temporary moratorium on new Medicaid enrollments for home care agencies, joining a growing number of states and the federal government that have imposed similar moratoria amid concerns over fraud and waste. New York has become the latest state to impose a temporary moratorium on new Medicaid enrollments for home care agencies, joining a growing number of states and the federal government that have imposed similar moratoria amid concerns over fraud and waste. 

Hospice care in the era of AI: hospices' views on data-driven tools to support live discharge decisions
Journal of the American Geriatrics Society; by Elizabeth A. Luth, Caitlin Brennan, Susan Hurley, Kira G. Sheldon, Yongkang Zhang; 8/3/26 
Live discharge occurs for 20% of hospice enrollees, resulting in loss of support and disruptive care transitions, with higher risk for patients with Alzheimer's disease and related dementias (ADRD). Little is understood about how data-driven clinical decision support tools (e.g., predictive algorithms) might support decision making regarding live discharge. ... This paper advances our understanding of multilevel factors hospices face in supporting patients discharged alive. It establishes hospices' interest in adopting data-driven tools to support live discharge and outlines criteria for successful development and implementation of these tools.

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