Literature Review

Compassus CMO: deliver on the hospice promise Hospice News; by Jim Parker; 8/18/26 A patient’s journey towards hospice often begins with a goals-of-care conversation, but those discussions must be timely and effective to truly guide the services a person receives at the end of life. Hospice News spoke with Dr. Kurt Merkelz, M.D., FAAHPM, chief medical officer for Compassus, about the value of these conversations, when they should happen and how clinicians should conduct them. Compassus, one of the nation’s largest hospice providers, is a portfolio company of the private equity firm Towerbrook Capital Partners and the health system Ascension Health.

Marketer Abraham Shin named in federal hospice fraud indictment Before It's News, Washington, DC; 8/18/26 Federal prosecutors have identified marketer Abraham Shin as an alleged operational link inside a Southern California hospice network, accusing him of connecting Medicare beneficiaries, sensitive personal information, paid referrals, and four providers that collectively submitted approximately $27,731,000 in disputed claims. Shin, 66, of Corona, California, is charged alongside hospice operator Oren David Shachar and mortuary employee Jeannie Choi in a 16-count indictment alleging healthcare fraud, aggravated identity theft, kickbacks, and a coordinated effort involving both living beneficiaries and people who had already died. The government alleges that Shin entered the wider operation no later than March 2025, more than four years after prosecutors say Shachar began the charged scheme, making his alleged conduct narrower in duration but central to several of its most serious later transactions.

Metal forget-me-nots display remembers hospice patients BBC News, West Midlands, United Kingdom; by Susie Rack; 8/17/26 Nine hundred handcrafted forget-me-nots have been planted in Worcestershire to remember hospice patients and raise essential funds. The display, planted by St Richard's Hospice in the gardens of St Andrew's Spire, Worcester, was created by artist Ed Alvis, from Metal Art UK, whose father was cared for by the charity at home. Sue Fletcher, from Droitwich, had dedicated one of the Celebration Garden flowers to her son Paul, who spent his last weeks in the hospice before he died, aged 34. ... The metal blooms can be purchased by supporters to be brought home at the end of the installation on 31 August. Fletcher said the campaign helped her "cherish memories of a wonderful son" as well as showing appreciation for the compassion of staff.Editor's Note: Go to the photo. See how one simple, accessible idea creates a meaningful, collective, visible way to remember loved ones, raise funds, and give donors a lasting, tangible connection to the hospice. 

ChatGPT Health now open to all US users Becker's Health IT; by Naomi Diaz; 7/23/26 OpenAI has expanded Health, a ChatGPT feature that lets users securely connect personal health data, to all eligible users in the U.S. The rollout covers logged-in users age 18 and older on web and iOS across the Free, Go, Plus and Pro plans, according to a July 23 OpenAI news release. Health lets users connect Apple Health data and supported medical records from U.S. hospital systems, One Medical or Function Health. With permission, ChatGPT can then use that information across any conversation, not just within a dedicated Health tab, to compare lab results, summarize changes since a last appointment, or factor in a recent injury or dietary restriction. ... The expansion comes as OpenAI faces a lawsuit over ChatGPT’s health guidance. A lawsuit filed July 21 claims ChatGPT offered inaccurate medical guidance to a Florida man that resulted in delayed care for a pulmonary embolism, and the plaintiff has asked the court to stop ChatGPT Health from operating until independent evaluators verify its safety.

Nearly one in five Medicare hospice patients now leaves the program alive rather than through death Medical Daily; by Dorothy Brooks; 8/17/26 Almost one in five people who leave Medicare hospice care each year leaves alive rather than through death, and the share has climbed every year since 2021. Federal data released this spring put the live discharge rate at 19.1 percent in fiscal year 2025, up from 16.9 percent four years earlier. For families, this is the rule almost nobody explains at enrollment. Hospice is not a permanent placement. It is a benefit tied to a prognosis, and when that prognosis changes, the benefit can end while the patient is still living, still ill, and still needing care. Understanding it before it happens is the difference between a planned transition and a phone call that lands like an eviction.

Detroit teen’s cancer death sparks 5K walk and new Georgia diploma law hoodline, Detroit, MI; by Jerry McAllister; 8/16/26 A Detroit family walked the riverfront near their old neighborhood this week to honor a 15-year-old whose fight with a rare bone cancer ended in his death nearly two years ago but has since reshaped state law hundreds of miles away in Georgia. GaKobe Milton, who once lived in Detroit before his family relocated to Atlanta, was diagnosed with osteosarcoma at age 13 in 2022 and died on December 10, 2024, after a two-year battle with the disease. His mother, Kuleesha Milton, brought his memory back to the city he called home with a 5K walk at Alfred Brush Ford Park along the Detroit Riverfront. ... Georgia lawmakers signed the GaKobe Milton Act into law in his honor, and Governor Brian Kemp signed House Bill 1284 on May 5, according to the Georgia General Assembly. The law requires local school boards to petition the State Board of Education within 14 days for graduation requirement waivers, allowing schools to award diplomas to terminally ill students receiving end-of-life care, or posthumously if necessary. The act waives completion of all remaining high school graduation requirements for eligible terminally ill students.

When a hospice patient comes to the hospitalICD10monitor; by Tiffany Ferguson, LMSW, CMAC, ACM; 8/17/26 A recent question was posed related to “What happens when a hospice enrolled patient returns to the hospital for emergency or hospital care?” Aside from the initial questions such as “did we even know this patient was on hospice when they roll through the emergency room, or why did they come back to the hospital? The next question may evolve to the following: is the treatment still involving care congruent with the patient’s hospice care plan or has the patient/representative elected to revoke their hospice services? Understanding these distinctions is increasingly important for case management, utilization review, registration, revenue cycle, and especially hospital clinical teams.

45 minutes saved per admission: how one hospice is re-shaping their businessHospice News; by Jack Silverstein; 8/17/26When Dar Miller came to Faith Hospice of Arizona two years ago, the organization’s census was just over 100 and their staff worked overtime to enter patient profiles. Now, their average daily census is 135-140, while their nurses have more time available at the bedside and with families. The change? Faith Hospice’s relationship with their pharmacy partner OnePoint Patient Care, whose combination of collaboration, communication, integrated technology and process ensures that hospices are not only getting the best pharmacy service possible, but that their operation is always evolving with the times.

4 huge Medicare pay reforms are part of new bipartisan House bill American Medical Association (AMA); by Tanya Albert Henry; 8/11/26 With more physician Medicare pay cuts proposed for 2027, a new comprehensive, bipartisan bill introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives would finally make structural changes that are needed to prevent those cuts and create a payment system that helps ensure that America’s seniors have access to quality, value-based healthcare. The AMA-supported Patients First Act (H.R. 9693) addresses four core reforms that the AMA and organized medicine have long sought from Washington. If passed, the bill would:

Coastal Corvette Club gives back to Delaware HospiceCape Gazette, Lewes, DE; by Ellen McIntyre; 8/16/26 Coastal Corvette Club of Delaware presented an $8,400 check to Delaware Hospice during an Aug. 3 meeting at Big Oyster Brewery in Milford. The donation, which the club raised through its annual Corvette Extravaganza car show at i.g. Burton Lewes Automall June 13, will directly offset the cost of hospice patient care. "Every dime that we bring in is a huge help," said Delaware Hospice Director of Philanthropy Peggy Dolby, who accepted the check on the hospice's behalf. "You guys benefit us at the highest level, [and] it doesn't go unnoticed."

The art and skill of caring for terminally ill patients in clinical research and beyondClinical Leader; by Kamila Novak; 8/14/26

AARP is working to root out health care ageism AARP; by Megan O'Reilly; 7/27/26 ... In collaboration with the Gerontological Society of America, AARP launched a training program last year to help future health professionals recognize and stop age-based bias. Tested at 13 universities across the country with about 500 students, the program uses health care scenarios and practical tools that remind providers to listen first and treat people as individuals, not stereotypes. ... Additionally, AARP has pushed for the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services to allow Medicare to cover essential training for family caregivers. And we fought for a measure to assess hospitals’ commitment to improving care for older patients. We also collaborated with the Geriatric Emergency Department Collaborative to train ER personnel to recognize dementia symptoms. ...