Pope Francis has died, Vatican says 
Reuters, Vatican City; by Joshua McElwee; 4/21/25, 6:11 am EDT, updated 6:51 am EDT 
Pope Francis, the first Latin American leader of the Roman Catholic Church, has died, the Vatican said on Monday, ending an often turbulent reign marked by division and tension as he sought to overhaul the hidebound institution. He was 88, and had suffered a serious bout of double pneumonia this year, but his death came as a shock after he had been driven around St. Peter's Square in an open-air popemobile to greet cheering crowds on Easter Sunday.
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National Volunteer Week: April 20-26, 2025 
Hospice & Palliative Care Today; by Joy Berger; 4/18/25 
We hope you have been preparing ways to celebrate your volunteers! The root word for volunteer--"vol"--means "will," "wish," as in of one's own volition. One's own free will. Your volunteers can surely choose to give their time to a world of other meaningful missions. And they choose your hospice. Each time they simply show up. This week, intentionally "will" and "wish" something special for your faithful volunteers, and your employees who lead them. 

• History: National Volunteer Week - April 20-26, 2025
• CMS Hospice Conditions of Participation §418.78: Volunteers
• Ahead of National Volunteer Week and in celebration of National Volunteer Month, NPHI CEO urges Americans: “Step forward. Be present. Volunteer with your local hospice.”
• April 21-27, 2024 National Volunteer Week: NHPCO's outreach suggestions & recognition ideas

Statement by the American Nurses Association on the importance of nursing specific science and research and the leaked FY 2026 HHS Budget Proposal 
American Nurses Association; Press Release, newsroom@ana.org; 4/17/25 
Nursing-specific science and research is uniquely positioned to inform the health care delivery system on evidence-based approaches to patient-centered, quality care that meets the needs of patients as effectively and efficiently as possible. ... “The American Nurses Association (ANA) is deeply concerned about the recent reports surrounding the leaked draft FY 2026 proposed budget for the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), specifically the elimination of National Institute of Nursing Research (NINR) and deep cuts to Title VIII Nursing Workforce Development Programs," expressed American Nurses Association President Dr. Jennifer Mensik-Kennedy, PhD, MBA, RN, NEA-BC, FAAN. “ANA firmly believes that NINR plays a vital role in ensuring that research guided by nurses’ education, experiences, and clinical training continue to enable our overall health care system to improve and be driven by evidence.” ... Further, ANA is grateful for the broad bipartisan support these programs have historically received from Congress and will work closely with lawmakers to safeguard funding for these programs during the FY2026 appropriations process.  ...

3 major tactics used by hospice scammers 
Hospice News; by Jim Parker; 4/18/25 
Among the numerous tactics that unscrupulous hospices use to commit fraud, three are rising to the forefront. Four states have garnered national attention as fraud hotbeds — Arizona, California, Nevada and Texas. These regions have seen swarms of new hospices emerging and receiving Medicare dollars. Numerous reports of unethical or illegal practices have surfaced, particularly among these new companies. ... One common practice among them is to keep their patient census low to avoid regulators’ attention, Judi Lund Person, principal of the consulting firm Lund Person and Associates, said at the Hospice News ELEVATE conference ... Among these providers, three principal tactics are emerging, according to Sheila Clark, president and CEO of the California Hospice and Palliative Care Association. ...

• When it comes to identify theft, fraudulent hospices obtain patients’ information and enroll them in hospice without their knowledge or consent. ... Most of these patients are not terminally ill. ...
• In poor care/no care scenarios, scammers enroll patients in hospice and subsequently do not provide the necessary or required services ...
• In cases of uninformed consent, patients are often deceived into enrolling in the hospice benefit without understanding what that means for them, including those who are not terminally ill.

How physician CEOs are reenergizing later-career clinicians
Becker's Hospital Review; by Kristin Kuchno; 4/9/25 
While much attention has been paid to recruiting top talent amid workforce shortages, retaining physicians later in their careers is also a key focus for health systems. Mentorship, flexible scheduling and leadership development opportunities can help energize experienced physicians and reduce burnout in the years leading up to their retirement, health system CEOs told Becker’s. Physician CEOs are uniquely positioned to understand the challenges around burnout and retention. Sunny Eappen, MD, president and CEO of The University of Vermont Health Network in Burlington [described], “Having experience being in front of a patient and having to either have difficult conversations or make difficult decisions is at the core of what we do,” Dr. Eappen said. “People understand that I can really speak from the heart and truly be in their shoes.”

What healthcare leaders can learn from palliative medicine 
Becker's Hospital Review; by Elizabeth Gregerson; 4/18/25 
The American Academy of Hospice and Palliative Medicine in March appointed Kristina Newport, MD, as chief medical officer for the organization.  Dr. Newport currently serves as chief of palliative care for Hershey, Pa.-based Penn State Health. She recently spoke with Becker’s about her priorities as AAHPM’s new CMO, as well as the role palliative care can play in oncology.
Question: Congratulations on your appointment, what are your top priorities in this new role?
Dr. Kristina Newport: Thank you. It’s really a privilege to be in this role and give back to the organization that raised me up. I’ve been a member of the Academy since 2007 when I was a medical resident, so the academy really has guided my career. One of my first priorities is to understand our members’ needs.  ... My second priority is developing and strengthening the relationships we have with other organizations who share our mission.  ... [The] foundations of palliative care are to prioritize what matters to patients and address the whole person through human connections and relationships. We have strong evidence in the literature that says when we do that well, we decrease non-beneficial treatment and improve the patient’s well-being, as well as the well-being of people that care for them. At the same time, we decrease unnecessary costs in the healthcare system while improving healthcare worker satisfaction. 

6 nonverbal cues that reveal your leadership communication style 
Forbes; by Cheryl Robinson; 4/17/25 
... [Some] of the most influential leadership communication doesn’t come from words—it comes from what you do when you’re not speaking. And it’s not always the cues you’d expect. These subtle, often overlooked signals shape how others perceive your authority; your body language tells a completely different story from your words. Dr. Albert Mehrabian’s well-known 7-38-55 rule breaks down communication into three key components: 7% of meaning comes from words, 38% is conveyed through tone of voice and 55% through body language. Mastering nonverbal communication has become a critical leadership skill in the digitally remote workspace.  ... To lead with greater impact, you need to recognize the signals you’re sending, especially the ones you don’t realize you’re giving off.

Access to hospice and certain services under the hospice benefit for beneficiaries with end-stage renal disease and beneficiaries with cancer 
MedPAC; by Kim Nueman, Grace Oh, and Nancy Ray; 4/11/25 
[From MedPac Presentation Roadmap, meetings held April 10 & 11, 2025]

• MedPAC has shown hospice use is substantially lower among decedents with ESRD than decedents overall
• In the 2024 and 2025 hospice proposed rules, CMS stated:
• Beneficiaries may believe Medicare policy prohibits hospices from providing dialysis, radiation, blood transfusions, and chemotherapy
• Such services are covered under the hospice benefit if the hospice provider determines the service is beneficial for an individual patient's symptoms
• CMS sought comment on whether hospice payment changes were warranted
• November 2023 workplan and commissioner interest

Editor's note: What does this mean? Our regulatory colleague Judi Lund Person, MPH, CHC describes, "Patients on dialysis who can't have dialysis and hospice at the same time would have to finish their dialysis in order to elect hospice, or have the hospice pay for the dialysis, which most hospices cannot afford to do."

‘Medical aid in dying’ bill passes Nevada Assembly despite Lombardo veto threat 
Las Vegas Review-Journal; by McKenna Ross; 4/17/25 
An effort to legalize medical aid in dying for terminally ill people has passed a crucial vote Thursday despite Gov. Joe Lombardo’s threat to veto the measure. Assembly Bill 346 would create a legal framework for competent and willing terminally ill patients to self-administer life-ending medicines. It passed in the Assembly on Thursday, 23-19.

What's at stake if CDC's Infection Control Practices Committee is cut 
MedPage Today; by Alexander Sundermann, DrPH; 4/17/25 
Whether you are placing a central line, managing a Clostridioides difficile case, or keeping a surgical field sterile, you're likely following standards influenced by the Healthcare Infection Control Practices Advisory Committee (HICPAC). While it may not be widely known outside of infection prevention circles, HICPAC plays a central role in shaping the evidence-based guidelines that frontline clinicians use every day to protect both patients and healthcare workers. ... Frontline clinicians ... rely on HICPAC guidance every day. Its recommendations shape the protocols used to prevent device-related infections, respond to emerging outbreaks, and meet regulatory and accreditation requirements. ...Eliminating HICPAC wouldn't just slow progress -- it would erode the foundation of infection prevention in U.S. healthcare.

Attorneys general challenge Trump’s deportations, citing impact on home health workforce 
McKnights Home Care; by Adam Healy; 4/16/25 
Nineteen state attorneys general filed an amicus brief Monday challenging President Donald Trump’s deportation policies. Among their arguments, they contended that deportations would have an outsized, negative impact on the home health industry’s ability to deliver care. “From a public health perspective, [states] depend on noncitizen healthcare workers who, like other immigrants, are forced to live in a climate of fear — nationwide over 1 million immigrants work in healt hcare, including 40% of home health aides and 18% of nursing home staff,” the brief said. The brief aims to block the administration’s so-called “ideological deportation policy,” established by executive orders 14161 and 14188. These orders intimidate workers, impair healthcare delivery and harm states’ economies, the attorneys general argued. 

Healthcare trends & transactions Q1 2025 
JD Supra; by Bass, Berry & Sims PLC; 4/17/25 
[Scrolling down to section titled, "Home Health, Hospice Care & Personal Care Services"]
... The notable uptick in M&A activity in this sector began in January, as several significant transactions were finalized.

• The Pennant Group, Inc. ... purchased the Oregon assets of Signature Healthcare at Home ...
• Help at Home acquired three home care groups in the northeast ...
• St. Croix Hospice announced that it plans to formally acquire the Mayo Clinic Health System's hospice operations in Southwest Minnesota ...
• Gracepoint Home Care ... acquired Touching Hearts Senior Care ...
• UnitedHealth Group and Amedisys announced planned divestitures ...

We anticipate that even with the rise of M&A activity, organizations in this sector will continue to find other ways to scale their operations. In past reports, we highlighted that some hospice systems hoping to expand their operations might look to affiliate with other hospice systems rather than pursue acquisitions themselves. 

7 challenges of AI integration in healthcare and their remedies 
informa - TechTarget and Informa; by John Moore; 4/16/25 
The healthcare sector faces many hurdles when adopting AI. Obstacles include setting an AI strategy, dealing with fragmented data, and addressing ethics, security and compliance. The integration of artificial intelligence in healthcare has been long coming, dating back to at least the 1980s, when expert systems were touted as a potential diagnostic tool. ... Top challenges of AI in healthcare:

1. Understanding AI and setting the strategy ...
2. Creating an AI team to guide deployments ...
3. Overcoming data fragmentation ...
4. Dealing with ethics, compliance and security ...
5. Addressing adoption concerns ...
6. Expanding AI capabilities ...
7. Helping employees through the AI transition ...

Using technology to improve matching drug details in hospice care 
Patient Safety & Quality Healthcare (PSQH); by Matt Phillion; 4/17/25 
For Wise Hospice Options, prescribers had been spending an average of 15 seconds matching each flagged drug and 20 seconds per drug entering missing sig, or label, details. Recently, they incorporated clinical-grade AI from DrFirst into automating this process, enabling those same providers to spend two to three seconds per drug, with fewer medications flagged for manual review by pill icons. ... The AI implementation allowed Wise to standardize data from different systems into a workflow that allows clinicians to see complete information before ordering prescriptions, helping avoid delays and reduce errors. Clinicians continue to review medication information for accuracy and adjust based on discussions with the patient but require fewer clicks and keystrokes so they can make faster, more informed decisions. ... Why the impact on hospice is key: The first thing to consider, Faubion explains, is that when it comes to hospice patients, they are going to be on a lot of medications. ...

Portugal: Government signs contracts for 3,000 palliative care beds 
MacauBusiness.com; by LUSA; 4/18/25 
The government on Thursday [4/17/25] signed 90 financing contracts worth €88 million with the private and social sectors to create 3,300 places in the National Network for Integrated Continuing Care (RNCCI). ... The government on Thursday signed 90 financing contracts worth €88 million with the private and social sectors to create 3,300 places in the National Network for Integrated Continuing Care (RNCCI). ... The minister added that “the government’s determination is not to slow down the pace of implementation of the RRP”, emphasising that another 800 contracts will be signed in the coming weeks, in different areas.

Volunteering is at the very core of being human. No one has made it through life without some else's help. ~ Heather French Henry

Celebrating National Volunteer Week, April 20-26, 2025