Love hurts: Leadership, quality, and the future of hospice & palliative care | part two
Teleios Collaborative Network (TCN Talks); podcast by Chris Comeaux with Dr. Alex Smith and Dr. Eric Widera; 3/6/26 
In Part Two of “Love Hurts: Leadership, Quality, and the Future of Hospice & Palliative Care,” leaders from the GeriPal podcast and TCNtalks / Anatomy of Leadership, continue a thoughtful discussion on the most pressing issues facing Hospice and Palliative Care today. The conversation explores how waste, fraud, and abuse in isolated cases can tarnish the reputation of an entire field—even when the majority of providers deliver extraordinary care.  The panel dives into the evolving landscape of ownership models, from nonprofit and faith-based organizations to private equity–backed providers, raising an important question: does ownership affect quality, or does leadership and accountability matter more?

Avow Hospice fights new rival in Naples 
Naples Today | Health; 3/5/26 
Avow Hospice, a long-standing hospice provider in Naples, Florida, is objecting to the state's preliminary approval of a new hospice entity, Preferred Care Hospice, that Avow says would be detrimental to its operations of over 40 years in the community. Avow has filed a petition for an administrative hearing to try to overturn the state's approval of the new hospice. ... The battle between Avow Hospice and the new Preferred Care Hospice highlights the competitive nature of the hospice industry, especially in growing markets like Naples. 

Critical hospice facility reopens in Somerset County 
WTAJ Altoona, Somerset County, PA; by Colin Day; 3/6/26 
Windber Hospice announced the reopening of its Somerset inpatient hospice facility on Friday. The facility has been closed since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, leaving elderly residents in the community void of essential care. After re-establishing ownership of the property, the “Children’s Aid Society Foundation” asked Windber Hospice to reopen and staff the facility for its intended purpose. The hospice will reopen on June 1, once final approvals from Medicare and the Pennsylvania Department of Health are confirmed. 

Heart to Heart Hospice expands service in East Texas 
Cision | PR Newswire, Plano, TX; Press Release; 3/3/26 
Heart to Heart Hospice, one of the country's largest private providers of hospice care, has opened two new agencies in East Texas, significantly expanding its ability to serve patients and families in the region. Heart to Heart Hospice of Huntsville and Heart to Heart Hospice of Hemphill are now making a broad range of hospice services available in nine additional Texas counties. The Huntsville agency serves the counties of Brazos, Grimes, Houston, Madison, Polk, Trinity, and Walker. The Hemphill location covers Sabine and San Augustine counties. 

Hawaii Care Choices expands palliative care services to N. Hawaii 
West Hawaii Today; Press Release; 3/8/26 
Hawaii Care Choices has expanded of its Kupu Palliative Care Program into North Hawaii, “increasing access to compassionate, patient-centered care for individuals living with serious illness and the families who care for them,” according to a press release. Kupu Palliative Care is now available through a dedicated clinic space located within the North Hawaii Hospice office. This will extend palliative care services to those living in Hamakua, Waimea, as well as North and South Kohala. 

Hyperactive delirium during hospice patients’ last week of life in a home care setting  
American Journal of Hospice and Palliative Medicine; by K. Melekis, MSW, PhD, C. S. Weisse, PhD, J. Whittier, BS, K. Bidgood, BS; 2/20/26 
Symptoms of hyperactive delirium (HD) including restlessness, agitation, hallucinations, and delusions, can be very distressing to patients and their caregivers. HD has been shown to increase as death approaches in inpatient care settings, but less is known about HD in home hospice settings where care is often provided by informal caregivers.  ... Results: HD symptoms were referenced in 32.6% of patients (N = 29). Among those who received care for at least 7 days prior to their death (N = 19), a total of 133 HD incidents were recorded. HD symptoms increased steadily in the last week of life and caregiver narratives described challenges with symptom management. 

Pikes Peak Hospice donation drive smashes goal; 150 new blankets collected for veteran patients 
The Gazette, Colorado Springs, CO; by O'Dell Isaac; 3/2/26 
Pikes Peak Hospice and Palliative Care reached out the local community with an ambitious request in early January ... [asking] for donations of up to 100 new, handmade lap blankets for its veteran patients by March 2. ... The community has answered the call – and then some. More than 150 red, white and blue blankets have been donated, with more donations still arriving, ... "We've been overwhelmed by this incredible response," said Sonya Bergeron, veteran liaison with Pikes Peak Hospice.

Huey Perry: Between celebration and goodbye 
The Herald-Dispatch, Huntington, WV; by Huey Perry; 3/6/26 
There are moments in life that do not fit neatly into human emotion. They do not allow us the comfort of a single response. They stretch the heart in opposite directions at once. I recently experienced such a moment over something as ordinary as lunch. Three friends met to share a meal. Two of them had suffered lung cancer. On this particular day, the news arrived like a divided verdict from some invisible court. One firend had been declared cancer-free. The other had been referred to hospice care. Across the table sat life and death, side by side. ... How does one act in such a moment? I found myself suspended between two emotional poles. ... [Full access may be limited behind a paywall]

ECU Health announces transition of Home Health and Hospice Services to Liberty Home Care and Hospice 
Roanoke-Chowan News-Herald, Greenville, NC; Press Release; 3/5/26
On March 5, ECU Health announced it has entered into an agreement to sell its Home Health and Hospice business unit to Liberty Home Care and Hospice, an experienced mission‑aligned provider delivering high‑quality care across the Carolinas. The sale will occur pending approval from the North Carolina Attorney General office and will help ensure home health and hospice services remain available for patients and families in the region. The transition includes all ECU Health Home Health and Hospice operations, including: Home Health offices in Greenville, Windsor, Washington and Kenansville, Hospice offices in Greenville, Ahoskie and Kenansville, and The Service League of Greenville Hospice House. 

The US health spending problem is still about prices
Health Affairs; by Irene Papanicolas, Jonathan Cylus, Luca Lorenzoni; 2/18/26
For more than two decades, debates about why US health care spending is so high have been shaped by the insight articulated by Gerard Anderson, Uwe Reinhardt and Peter Hussey: that the United States does not use more health care than other high-income countries but pays much higher prices for it. The original “It’s the Prices, Stupid” argument was fundamentally about price levels, not price growth. That central insight remains as true today as when it was first articulated: across services, drugs, and inputs, the United States consistently pays substantially higher prices than its peers for comparable services, drugs, and inputs.

East Texas woman celebrates 100th birthday, leaving legacy of faith and family 
The Lufkin Daily News; by Ruben Ibarra, Jr.; 6/6/26 
A woman who spent her life caring for others turned 100 Monday, surrounded by family members who say her legacy is one of strength, faith and unwavering love. Alzonia Hood Freeman, born March 2, 1926, in Camden, reached the milestone under the care of Hospice in the Pines. A weekend gathering brought relatives from across Texas and neighboring states, while hospice staff held a birthday observance Monday to honor a life that has stretched across a full century. The celebration included a cake donated by Areles Bakery and flowers provided by Lufkin Flower Market.

Blessed are the curious, for they shall have adventures. ~ Lovelle Drachman