Literature Review

Providing inclusive and affirmative palliative care for the LGBTQ+ community: why inclusive care for LGBTQ+ patients is essential CAPC - Center to Advance Palliative Care; by Kimberly D. Acquaviva, PhD, MSW, CSE, FNAP, Anup Bharani, MD, Brynn Bowman, MPA, Brittany Chambers, MPH, CHES, Diane Farquhar, LCSW, ACSW (1957 – 2023), Noelle Marie Javier, MD, Rabbi Max Zev Reynolds, BCC, MA, Billy Rosa, PhD, MBE, APRN, Rayna Ross, CHES; retrieved from the internet 6/9/26 Despite the historical efforts to advance civil rights for the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and/or questioning (LGTBQ+) community – there continues to be ongoing discrimination in society, including in health care. Providing inclusive care for seriously ill LGBTQ+ patients is essential for ensuring equitable, respectful, and comprehensive health care. ... The Bottom Line: For patients that have experienced discrimination from the health system, trust-building is a key priority and the foundation on which health care is delivered.

VITAS Healthcare’s growing Florida footprint Hospice News; by Holly Vossel; 6/4/26 Florida-headquartered VITAS Healthcare is expanding its reach across the Sunshine State. The Chemed Corp. subsidiary recently launched a new inpatient hospice center in Port St. Lucie, Florida, a part of its existing service region since 2019. Meanwhile, VITAS also announced its expansion into Florida’s Gulf Coast region of Manatee County. Both strategic moves are intended to improve access to hospice and palliative care, according to VITAS Executive Vice President Patty Husted.

Central Coast VNA & Hospice expands focus on aging-in-place support as regional demand grows K99.1 XLG, Monterey, CA; by Presswire.com; 6/5/26 Central Coast VNA & Hospice, a nonprofit home healthcare organization serving Monterey, Santa Cruz, San Benito, and South Santa Clara counties, is expanding its community education and outreach efforts around aging-in-place care services. The initiative responds to a growing number of families in the region seeking structured, professional support to help older adults live safely and independently at home, a trend observed broadly across California and the nation as the senior population continues to grow.

Families struggle to secure home hospice U.S. News; by Cameron Blake; 6/3/26 A woman’s effort to honor her husband Craig’s last wish to die at home became a second fight alongside his bladder cancer, highlighting growing strains in access to hospice care outside the hospital. The caregiver, who asked to speak about her experience, said the couple faced delays and mixed guidance when trying to arrange home-based support in the final weeks of his illness. Their story mirrors a national problem as more families seek comfort-centered care while agencies report tight staffing and stricter eligibility reviews.

Community Hospice and Health Services invests in behavioral health Hospice News; by Jim Parker; 6/3/26 California-based Community Hospice and Health Services is extending its mission to improve quality of life into the behavioral health space. In addition to the nonprofit’s bereavement care program, five years ago it established Hope Counseling Mental Health Services, to provide talk therapy to individuals from the community in need of additional support. Licensed clinical social workers and a marriage and family therapist staff the center, according to Monica Ojcius, director of strategic development at Community Hospice. “We formalized a mild to moderate outpatient mental health program. We did that because folks heard about our services for people experiencing grief and bereavement after hospice,” Ojcius told Hospice News.

We couldn't afford to pay for my mom's dementia assisted living anymore. She moved into a tiny house next door to me. Business Insider; as told to Noah Sheidlower; 5/31/26 This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Lori Bufka, 64, who is caring for her mother with dementia in Arizona. Assisted living became too expensive for her mother, so Bufka moved her into a trailer next to their home, where her mother would have enough space and safety. This interview has been edited for length and clarity. Editor's Note: From this essay, "She went into hospice care, and we hired someone to come for a few hours a week. It was supposed to be $37 for two hours, but when I got the bill, they tacked on mileage, so it became $92. We figured it wasn't worth it, so now hospice volunteers visit every now and then, and hospice covers medically necessary appointments. ..."

[Global] The Real World Charity Challenge surpasses 1,200 volunteer acts in 7 months BusinessWire, Miami, FL; Press Release; 6/1/26 The Real World members have completed 1,251 documented acts of community service through the platform's global Charity Challenge, New Era Learning LLC announced today. ... "The Charity Challenge was designed to test whether members would commit to high-effort work without immediate financial return, and the submission numbers gave us a clear answer," said Mark Berringer, spokesperson for New Era Learning LLC. "The 1,251 verified completions in seven months, across 14 countries and causes ranging from hospice care to environmental cleanup, show that the program's structure works across very different local contexts."Editor's Note: Beyond Compliance — Volunteer hours may fulfill CMS requirements, but what else do they tell you? How intentionally do you use volunteer data to recognize service, strengthen recruitment and retention, and better understand volunteer impact throughout patient and family care?

Bristol Hospice acquires Hope Hospice & Palliative Care Hospice News; by Holly Vossel; 6/2/26 Bristol Hospice has purchased Hope Hospice & Palliative Care for an undisclosed amount, expanding its geographic footprint in the South. Established in 2020, Hope Hospice & Palliative Care serves patients across the region of Memphis, Tennessee. The hospice and palliative care provider has built a strong, trusted reputation for high quality across these communities, said Bristol Hospice President and CEO Alex Mauricio. The acquisition represents an opportunity to preserve and expand sustainable access, Mauricio indicated.

CMS reportedly unresponsive to hospice payment suspension rebuttals Hospice News; by Jim Parker; 5/29/26 The U.S. Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has been largely unresponsive to hospices’ rebuttals to payment suspensions due to suspicion of fraud. Legitimate hospice providers are being swept into CMS’ broader fraud crackdown, with some agencies reportedly facing payment suspensions severe enough to force closures. ... Hospice News has spoken with 10 hospices that have received suspension letters; each indicated that the block on their payments was based on a single metric — live discharges. Suspended hospices have the ability to file a rebuttal seeking to have the payment freeze reversed. However, to date, few hospices have received any response from CMS or its Unified Program Integrity Contractors (UPIC).

State grant supports Navian Hawai'i, expands access to hospice careNavian Hawaii, Honolulu, HI; Press Release; 5/14/26 As federal funding uncertainty continues to impact health care providers nationwide, the Hawaiʻi State Legislature has approved a $450,000 grant-in-aid to Navian Hawaii. The funds will be used to renovate the nonprofit organization’s Kailua Home, helping expand access to hospice care and potentially increase Medicare funding for the state. The funding was included in the state’s supplemental budget bill finalized April 30, which outlines operating and capital improvement priorities for the upcoming fiscal year. The measure comes amid broader federal budget concerns, including proposed cuts to Medicaid under H.R. 1.

First do no harm: communication surrounding non-beneficial treatments American Journal of Hospice and Palliative Medicine; by Cassie Stanzler, MD, Adam Marks, MD, MPH, and Laura Taylor, MD, MSc; 5/21/26 Despite a consensus in the medical community that clinicians should not offer non-beneficial treatments (NBTs) to their patients, little guidance exists on the particular communication needs around this fraught topic. While intended in the spirit of non-maleficence, setting limits around NBTs can be seen by patients and families as abandonment, resulting in conflict. In this paper, we propose a framework to guide Palliative Care clinicians in communicating about these complex issues with patients and families. ... Our framework emphasizes proactive relationship building with patients and families, close attention to their values, and compassionate limit-setting when medically appropriate. 

[United Kingdom] Palliative care beds paused over lack of staffing BBC News, Northamptonshire, United Kingdom; by Laura Coffey; 5/28/26 Palliative care beds have been temporarily taken out of use for end-of-life patients due to an "unexpected shortfall in consultant cover", an NHS trust said. Northamptonshire Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust (NHFT) said the six affected beds at Danetre Hospital in Daventry would instead be used for rehabilitation. ... In a statement, NHFT said: "A recruitment process is ongoing, and once the medical cover has been resolved, the beds will switch back to being palliative care beds. 

Veterans Guest House hospice program nears one-year milestone ahead of Memorial Day KOLO 8 ABC NewsNow, Reno, NV; by Hana Altenburg; 5/25/26 As Memorial Day approaches, a Northern Nevada nonprofit is encouraging the community to reflect on the sacrifices made by veterans while highlighting a growing need for hospice care services in the region. ... According to Veterans Guest House, there are an estimated 10 hospice beds dedicated specifically to veterans in the Reno-Sparks area, despite Nevada being home to more than 150,000 veterans statewide. Nearly half of those veterans are age 65 or older. The Cynthia Lake House provides free accommodations for veterans and family members during hospice care.