When the storm hits: how hospice providers help protect Florida’s most vulnerable patients 
South Florida Hospital News and Healthcare Report; by Kathleen Coronado; 6/1/26 
In South Florida, hurricane preparedness is a part of life. Hospitals activate emergency operations centers, nursing homes review evacuation plans, and families rush to gather supplies before a storm makes landfall. For hospice providers, preparedness carries an additional layer of responsibility. Patients receiving end-of-life care are among the most medically vulnerable members of our communities. Many rely on oxygen, medications, specialized equipment or around-the-clock support that cannot simply pause when severe weather arrives. At VITAS Healthcare, hurricane preparedness is not a seasonal checklist. It is a year-round operational priority designed to ensure continuity of compassionate care before, during and after a disaster.

• Preparing before the storm ...
• Hospice's role in healthcare continuity ...
• Lessons from past storms ...
• Compassion during crisis ...

Editor's Note: The importance of preparedness cannot be over-emphasized. Read. Learn. Assess your current risks and systems. Don't just rely on Emergency & Disaster Plans developed some 10 years ago. Update. Train. Use and evaluate on smaller scales when threatening storms or other events occur.

National Alliance for Care at Home responds to GAO report regarding Medicare hospice payment 
The National Alliance for Care at Home (The Alliance), Alexandria, VA; Press Release; 6/9/26 
The National Alliance for Care at Home (the Alliance) today responded to a new report from the Government Accountability Office (GAO) recommending that Congress consider directing the Department of Health and Human Services to restructure the Medicare hospice payment system to better promote routine home care payment efficiency. ... The GAO report asserts that shifting hospice to per-visit payment rates comparable to home health would have reduced Medicare spending by $7.6 billion for a selected group of beneficiaries in 2024. However, these savings are generated in part by paying less to “low visit” hospices that are concentrated in known high-fraud areas. ... 

Providing inclusive and affirmative palliative care for the LGBTQ+ community: why inclusive care for LGBTQ+ patients is essential 
CAPC - Center to Advance Palliative Care; by Kimberly D. Acquaviva, PhD, MSW, CSE, FNAP, Anup Bharani, MD, Brynn Bowman, MPA, Brittany Chambers, MPH, CHES, Diane Farquhar, LCSW, ACSW (1957 – 2023), Noelle Marie Javier, MD, Rabbi Max Zev Reynolds, BCC, MA, Billy Rosa, PhD, MBE, APRN, Rayna Ross, CHES; retrieved from the internet 6/9/26 
Despite the historical efforts to advance civil rights for the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and/or questioning (LGTBQ+) community – there continues to be ongoing discrimination in society, including in health care. Providing inclusive care for seriously ill LGBTQ+ patients is essential for ensuring equitable, respectful, and comprehensive health care. ... The Bottom Line: For patients that have experienced discrimination from the health system, trust-building is a key priority and the foundation on which health care is delivered.

• Understanding LGBTQ+ Terms and Definitions ...
• Project Respect: Experiences of Seriously Ill LGBTQ+ Patients and Partners with their Health Care Providers ...
• Provider Observations of LGBTQ+ Patient Experience ...
• Spiritual Care Experiences ...
• Improving the LGBTQ+ Patient Experience as a Palliative Care Clinician ...
• Fostering a safe space for our LGBTQ+ patients and staff

Home care/hospice salary & benefits studies: participation now open 
LeadingAge; by Josh Moore; 6/8/26 
Participation is now open for the annual Home Health and Hospice Salary & Benefits Studies, conducted in cooperation by LeadingAge’s partner Hospital & Healthcare Compensation Service (HCS), and LeadingAge is encouraging our members to participate.  The study is recognized as the standard for reliable and comprehensive compensation data, including management salaries, nonmanagement wages, fringe benefits, and other facility metrics. ... Last year’s Home Care Report contained data from 1,111 home health agencies and the Hospice Report had data from 1,091 hospice agencies.

What will people remember about you after you die? But legacy can manifest in different ways and even be an unconscious act 
Daily Sun; by BBC Future; 5/31/26 
When Beth Hunter's father was diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease, she asked him whether she could record them having a conversation, so she could listen back to it in years to come. He refused. He wasn't the type to have deep heart-to-hearts about their relationship, Hunter says – he didn't confront his diagnosis or talk about death. Instead, he prioritized writing his war stories, and did so by hand, before hiring someone else to type them. This is what he felt was most valuable to pass on after his death.

What to know about recent federal actions involving state Medicaid program integrity 
KFF; by Jessica Mathers and Elizabeth Hinton; 6/9/26 
The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) has also taken nationwide and state-specific action in the Medicaid program, including:

• CMS state-specific financial action and inquiries: ...
• 50-state requests/reviews: ...
• Federal request for information: ...

How has CMS engaged with individual states on program integrity? ...

• Figure 1: Timeline of Program Integrity Actions in Minnesota ...
• Figure 2: Federal Action Related to Potential Fraud and Abuse ...
• Table 1: CMS's Inquiries to States, by Question Domain Included in Inquiry ...
• Table 2: CMS-Identified High-Risk Services Areas, by State ...

What new provider revalidation actions have been initiated by CMS? ...

AHA comments on CMS’ FY 2027 LTCH Prospective Payment System Proposed Rule 
American Hospital Association; letter from Ashley Thompson, AHA Sr VP Public Policy Analysis and Development to Dr. Mehmet Oz, CMS Administrator; 6/8/26 
On behalf of our nearly 5,000 member hospitals, health systems and other healthcare organizations, including approximately 230 long-term care hospitals (LTCHs); our clinician partners — more than 270,000 affiliated physicians, 2 million nurses and other caregivers — and the 43,000 healthcare leaders who belong to our professional membership groups, the American Hospital Association (AHA) appreciates the opportunity to comment on the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ (CMS’) fiscal year (FY) 2027 LTCH prospective payment system (PPS) proposed rule. ... Our detailed comments follow.

• Propose FY 2027 LTCT PPS Payment Updates ...
• LTCH Quality Reporting Program ...

Pennsylvania General Assembly House Bill 2254 - Medical Marijuana Act
Pennsylvania General Assembly | House Committee Vote Summary 2025-2026 Regular SEssion; 6/1/26 
Requires healthcare facilities to permit terminally ill patients to use medical marijuana. 

• An Act amending the act of April 17, 2016 (P.L.84, No.16), known as the Medical Marijuana Act, providing for compassionate access to medical marijuana; and imposing a penalty.
• Motion passed 37 out 37 votes.

National HealthCare Corp. closes 5-SNF, $50.5M acquisition 
McKnights Senior Living; by Kathleen Steele Gaivin; 6/7/26 
National HealthCare Corp. and its affiliates have closed on the previously announced $50.5 million purchase of five skilled nursing facilities from National Health Corp., the Murfreesboro, TN-based company announced Thursday [6/5/26]. ... Four of the SNFs are in Tennessee, and the other is in South Carolina.

[United Kingdom] Pensioners taking marathon bus trip for hospice 
BBC News; by Marcus Boothe-Bristol; 6/9/26 
Two pensioners are travelling more than 1,000 miles by bus to raise cash for their local hospice. Valerie Boon and Sue Hill, both in their eighties and from Bristol, plan to use just public transport to get from John O'Groats to Land's End. ... Last year, St Peter's Hospice cared for more than 2,000 people that live with incurable cancer and other life-limiting illnesses. The pair are completely funding the trip ourselves, so every penny donated goes directly to the hospice.

1776-1786: 250 Years - A History of Care
Hospice & Palliative Care Today; by Joy Berger; for 6/10/26
Read details and explore source links

• Continental Congress, Declaration of Independence, July 4, 1776
  "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness." Thomas Jefferson, principal drafter for the Continental Congress
  Historical context: The Declaration of Independence's asserts equality and human rights and lays  the foundational American claim that every life possesses worth.
  Today's hospice and palliative care: Rights to dignity, access to care, core respect for each other (patients, families, staff, volunteers, leadership, community).
  
  
• Dr. Benjamin Rush, Directions for Preserving the Health of Soldiers, 1778
  "The art of preserving the health of a soldier consists in attending to the following particulars ..." Dr. Benjamin Rush, physician, Continental Army medical leader, signer of the Declaration of Independence
  Historical context: Rush's pamphlet was the first American public health manual focused on preventive medicine and military hygiene, articulating principles — clean water, proper food, adequate rest — that predated germ theory by a century.
  Today's hospice and palliative care: Preventive medicine leads to longer life expectancy. Infection control. Caregiver wellness.

Never be limited by other people's limited imaginations. If you adopt their attitudes, then the possibility won't exist because you'll have already shut it out. ~ Mae Jemison