Literature Review

Hospice margins dropping despite utilization gains Hospice News; by Jim Parker; 12/9/25 Hospice margins are falling despite record-high utilization, according to data from the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC). The commission has released its draft recommendations to Congress, repeating its annual call to eliminate hospice payment rate increases in future years. “For fiscal year, 2027, Congress should eliminate the update to the 2026 Medicare base payment rate for hospice,” MedPAC indicated in its draft recommendations. ... The average Medicare fee-for-service margin for hospices fell to 8% in 2023, down from 9.8% in 2022 and 14.2% in 2020, according to MedPAC. Among for-profit providers, the average 2023 margin was 13.7%, whereas nonprofits in aggregate showed a loss at -1.3%. These numbers exclude cap overpayments and non-reimbursible costs.

Q&A: What is the relationship between AI and clinical informatics? CDW Healthcare; by Jordan Scott; 12/8/25 ... Health systems are seeking ways to address workflow inefficiencies with artificial intelligence, but if those tools aren’t implemented with a deep understanding of existing workflows and IT environments, then they aren’t likely to succeed. Clinical informaticists are well versed in health IT implementation and the change management required to ensure buy-in and adoption. HealthTech spoke with Murielle Beene, senior vice president and chief health informatics officer at Trinity Health — a large, not-for-profit health system with 92 hospitals across 25 states — about how AI is changing the field of clinical informatics. 

Canadian woman approved for assisted suicide instead of getting surgery LifeNews.com; by Steven Ertelt; 12/8/25 A Canadian woman suffering from parathyroid disease has revealed that she is considering assisted suicide because she cannot get the surgery she needs. Jolene Van Alstine, from Saskatchewan, suffers from a rare form of parathyroid disease, which results in extreme bone pain, nausea and vomiting. She requires surgery to remove a remaining parathyroid, but no surgeons in Saskatchewan are able to perform the operation. In order to be referred to another province for the operation, Van Alstine must first be seen by an endocrinologist, yet no Saskatchewan endocrinologists are currently accepting new patients. Van Alstine commented that the pain has become so unbearable that she has applied and been approved for Canada’s euthanasia and assisted suicide programme, with the ending of her life scheduled to take place on 7 January 2026.

2026 Forbes top hospitals Forbes; edited by Rachel Rabkin Peachman; 12/4/25 Forbes has developed its inaugural list: Forbes Top Hospitals 2026. This unique rating system evaluates general acute care hospitals throughout the United States to offer consumers unbiased information on which hospitals can offer top-notch, high-value medical services, no matter where they are in the country—as well as a benchmark against which hospitals can compare their performance to that of their peers. ... Central to the methodology is its emphasis on clinical patient outcomes (such as rates of mortality, survival, infection and readmissions). These measures were given the most weight and, therefore, had the most influence on each hospital’s overall rating. Editor's Note: Go to this article and scroll down to "The Full List." You can search by name, filter by state, see methodology (link next to "Star Ratings"), and see star ratings for "Overall," "Outcomes," "Best Practices," "Value," and "Patient Experience." A related article about this list is by Becker's Hospital Review, "253 5-star hospitals: Forbes." Are any hospitals you partner with listed? Share this article and congratulate them.

Social worker dies from injuries suffered in San Francisco hospital stabbing attack: Police ABC News; by Bill Hutchinson; 12/7/25 A social worker, described by colleagues as "remarkable" and "compassionate," has died from stab wounds she suffered when a patient armed with a steak knife allegedly attacked her inside a San Francisco hospital, according to authorities. The victim, whose name has not been released, was pronounced dead on Saturday, two days after she was stabbed repeatedly inside Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital and Trauma Center, according to the San Francisco Sheriff's Office. The victim was described by the sheriff's office as a 51-year-old University of California, San Francisco, social worker. 

Hospitalization experiences among nursing home residents with dementiaJournal of the American Medical Directors Association; by Jordan M Alpert, Jeffrey D Kovach, Nicholas J Casacchia, David Harris, Ardeshir Hashmi, Luke Dogyun Kim, Silvia Perez-Protto, Matthew A Pappas, Michael B Rothberg; 12/5/25Hospital admissions among nursing home residents with Alzheimer's disease and related dementias (ADRD) are burdensome, expensive, and provide limited clinical benefit. ... Conclusions and implications: Patients undergoing hospital admission suffered distressing experiences, but most patients did not have do-not-resuscitate orders, and referrals to hospice and palliative care were rare. Patients and their family members should be informed about the hospital experience before admission and offered appropriate care services.

Inside TRU Thrift’s Giving Room: How Boulder donations reach neighbors in need The Gazette, Boulder, CO; by Tricia Stortz; 12/6/25 In the back of TRU Community Care’s Thrift Shop in Boulder, past racks of winter coats and holiday decor, there’s a doorway most shoppers never notice. Step through it, and you enter the Giving Room, a bustling, volunteer-run operation where nearly nothing goes to waste and where unsold items find new purpose across Boulder County. The space is compact, but the impact is wide. More than 30 local partner organizations – from homeless outreach teams to youth programs, animal shelters, mobility-assistance nonprofits and more – rely on the items flowing through this little room. Editor's Note: Calling all hospice organizations that have a thrift shop, read on!

[United Kingdom] Hospice donation a 'no-brainer' after lottery win BBC News; by Patrick Barlow; 12/6/25 A lottery winner who donated thousands of pounds to a hospice after the death of her husband said the decision was a "no-brainer" given the care he received there. Linda Styles, donated £25,000 to the Heart of Kent Hospice, in Aylesford, Kent, after winning £250,000 in the People's Post Code Lottery. Ms Styles' husband, Owen Styles, died in March aged 60 having been cared for at the hospice after being diagnosed with terminal liver cancer six weeks before. 

Healthcare fraud enforcement trends to expect in 2026 JD Supra; by Arnall Golden Gregory; 12/8/25Key Takeaways

MedPAC to recommend 7% cut to 2027 home health payment rate Home Health Care News; by Morgan Gonzales; 12/8/25 Just over a week after home health providers were hit with the announcement that their 2026 Medicare payment rates would be reduced by a 1.3% aggregate cut, the Medicare Payment Advisory Commission (MedPAC) agreed to recommend a significantly more drastic cut for the following year. On Friday, MedPAC released a draft report recommending that Congress reduce the Medicare base payment rate for home health care services for calendar year 2027 by 7%. 

Hospice House marks 20 years of compassion and community support KTLO.com, Mountain Home, AR; by Staff; 12/4/25 The Hospice of the Ozarks Hospice House is celebrating a major milestone this week, 20 years of providing comfort and dignity to families across the Twin Lakes Area. On Friday [12/5], the community is invited to join the celebration from noon until 2 at the administration building. Rebecca Rainer, relationship and giving officer, says the Dec. 5 date was intentional, marking exactly two decades since the hospice house first opened in 2005.

Poinsettias bring Christmas cheer and funds for hospice The Times-News; by Tommy Murphy; 12/4/25 This week, thousands of red and green poinsettias have been hand-delivered to folks across Troup County and beyond as part of a fundraiser for Wellstar West Georgia Hospice. ... This is the 36th annual poinsettia fundraiser held by West Georgia Hospice. It’s their second-largest fundraiser of the year behind their annual Ely Callaway Golf Tournament, said Sandy Melton, volunteer coordinator for West Georgia Hospice. ... This year, they’re delivering around 3,800 poinsettias.