Literature Review

The hidden cost of cancer's end: how financial strain shapes final months of care Fred Hutch Cancer Center, University of Washingon, Seattle, WA; by D. Moosavi; 6/25/26 ... Previous Fred Hutch research has shown that people with cancer are more than twice as likely to file for bankruptcy, and nearly twice as likely to experience what researchers call an “adverse financial event,” compared with people who don’t have cancer. But most of that earlier work focused on financial hardship as an outcome caused by cancer. This study flips the question: once someone is already dealing with financial strain, what happens to the care they receive as their illness progresses? 

The day you plant the seed is not the same day you eat the fruit. ~ Ralph Smart

Croí Health’s “The 12” gala raises more than $700,000 for hospice and home healthcare MassNonprofitNews; Press Release; 7/6/26 Croí Health’s (formerly NVNA and Hospice) annual The 12 gala raised more than $700,000 to support hospice and home health care, the largest amount in the event’s 12-year history. Held on June 17th at the Pat Roche Hospice Home in Hingham, Croí welcomed hundreds of guests under a massive tent. The fundraiser unites community leaders, donors, and sponsors around a shared mission: ensuring no patient in need is turned away for financial reasons. Named for the Hospice Home’s original 12 private resident rooms, The 12 has become an annual tradition for South Shore philanthropists since its inception in 2015. Guests gather just steps away from the rooms where patients receive end-of-life care, making for a deeply reflective evening.

[Canada] Palliative care is a fundamental human right TroyMedia; by Rebecca Vachon; 7/6/26 ... Despite the fact that everyone dies, and despite the fact that something like 180,000 Canadians and their families interact with some form of end-of-life care in a year, I keep confronting the perception that palliative care is a niche issue, not one of broad interest. But this reaction only underscores the poll's findings: namely that many Canadians continue to misunderstnad what palliative care is and isn't. On a more positive note, however, when Canadians do understand it, palliative care is, in fact, identified as a priority issue.

CMS proposes expanded authority to revoke Medicare privileges TechTarget; by Jacqueline LaPointe; 7/6/26 CMS proposes expanding its authority to revoke Medicare providers in fraud crackdown, while updating home health payments with a 2.4% increase and continued PDGM adjustments. The Trump administration wants to double down on its healthcare fraud, waste and abuse crackdown. This time, policymakers are seeking to expand CMS' powers to remove providers from Medicare -- a move that the agency says will save taxpayers about $82 million a year. The added capabilities are part of the Calendar Year 2027 Home Health Prospective Payment System Proposed Rule (CMS-1844-P), which CMS released ahead of the July 4th weekend.

N.J.’s hospice problem is also an equity problem | opinion NJ.com; by Christopher Rinn; 7/5/26 Again and again, families tell me the same thing after a loved one enters hospice care: “We wish we had called sooner.” By the time many New Jersey families reach hospice, they are physically exhausted, emotionally overwhelmed and navigating a medical crisis that has already taken a heavy toll. In our state, the median length of stay in hospice is just 13 days. That means many patients are receiving only days, not months, of the support, comfort and guidance hospice was designed to provide. The biggest reason is not denial or a lack of compassion from families. It is misunderstanding. ...

How to build trust in a new team and establish psychological safety - fast TylerHayden.com; by Tyler Hayden; 7/6/26 Psychological safety is one of the most talked-about concepts in modern leadership — and one of the least understood in practice. Most leaders know they’re supposed to create it. Far fewer know what it actually looks like when it’s missing, what it feels like when it’s present, or how to build it deliberately and quickly when the clock is ticking and the stakes are real. This post is for those leaders. The ones stepping into a new team, a skeptical room, or a group that’s been burned before — and who need more than theory. ...

Three billion people on the face of the earth go to bed hungry every night, but four billion people go to bed every night hungry for a simple word of encouragement and recognition. ~ Cavett Robert

Dignity shouldn’t depend on having an address: Holly Klein The Plain Dealer, Cleveland, OH; by guest columnist Holly Klein; 7/5/26 As a hospice nurse for more than 25 years, I’ve cared for people surrounded by family -- and I’ve cared for people who had no one. Today, as executive director and co-founder of Grace House Akron, I care for people who are experiencing homelessness, abandonment or extreme social isolation at the end of life. We provide a home and hospice care at no cost because we believe one simple truth: No one should die alone. I've cared for people living in motels, sleeping in shelters, staying in abandoned buildings or moving from one temporary place to another while facing a terminal illness. ... Hospice is not a place -- it's a model of care. But our healthcare system assumes everyone has somewhere safe to receive it. Many people don't.

Errors in billing in the United States may result in severe civil or even criminal penalties Spilman Thomas & Battle; by Christopher R. Arthur, William S. Thompson; 7/1/26 The United States Department of Justice (DOJ) has ratcheted up its efforts to pursue actions against corporations, healthcare entities, and individuals, including physicians, for false Medicare or Medicaid billing and COVID-19-related loans. ... As part of this announcement, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) suspended 1,079 providers and revoked billing privileges for 1,403 providers. ... In addition to allowing the United States to pursue perpetrators of fraud on its own, the FCA allows private citizens to file suits on behalf of the government (called “qui tam” suits) against those who have defrauded the government. In the healthcare realm, these suits are often filed by disgruntled employees and patients, but can also be brought by competitors. ...

Guardianship and hospice care fail dying patients MedPage Today's KevinMD.com; by Kirsten Engel, MD & Madha Tripathi; 6/3/26 “Mr. L” is alone, lying flat on his back in a slightly inclined bed, eyes squeezed shut, hands raised in the air as immobile fists. He has not spoken in weeks. ... The medical team calls it catatonia, a severe psychiatric syndrome that has rendered him mute, immobile, and medically fragile. The psychiatric care team has recommended comfort measures, and our hospice team is ready to accept him. ... Mr. L cannot access hospice because an overworked stranger appointed by the court has not yet returned the hospital’s calls. This is a guardian, a professional fiduciary who has never met Mr. L, who must sign the papers first. So we wait for the court to hold a hearing to approve the order. And Mr. L, still, silent, and suffering, waits with us.

7 ways palliative care can help people with ATTR-CMEveryday Health; by Abby McCoy, RN; 7/3/26 Transthyretin cardiac amyloidosis (ATTR-CM), a rare type of heart failure, can cause symptoms that affect more than just your heart, and many of them can lower your quality of life. But palliative care, or care meant to provide symptom relief, comfort, and support, can help you live better with this condition. ... Here’s how your palliative care team can help you manage life with ATTR-CM and feel your best.

Evacuations, rescues and 1 arrest made amid flooding July 3 and 4 Des Moines Register, Des Moines, IO; by Tyler Jett and Kyle Werner; 7/3/26 Residents of an apartment complex and a hospice center in northeast Des Moines were evacuated from their homes by rising floodwaters on Friday morning. UnityPoint Health spokesperson Mark Tauscheck said in a Friday, July 3, email that the Des Moines Fire Department told employees to move the system's five patients at Taylor House, a hospice center in the 3400 block of East Douglas Avenue. The staff moved the patients to UnityPoint's Methodist West Hospital in West Des Moines. "The health and safety of our patients is our highest priority," Tauscheck said. "Our teams are working quickly and compassionately."