Literature Review

Chris Comeaux announces the release of first leadership book.News ReleaseNovember 30, 2023 Hendersonville, NC—Chris Comeaux, President/CEO of Teleios Collaborative Network announces the release of his timely book, The Anatomy of Leadership, on November 30, 2023. The Anatomy of Leadership provides a framework for leadership while providing tools and strategies for leaders to develop their skills. The Anatomy of Leadership is published by Teleios Communications and is available on Amazon and in print.Editor Note: While this press release occurred a couple weeks ago, we wanted to include it in our inaugural newsletter.

The experience of Rosalynn and Jimmy Carter helps widen the perception of hospiceBy Heath BartnessTwin Cities Pioneer PressDecember 28, 2023In 2023 the public benefited from the willingness of President Jimmy Carter and his family to openly share their health updates. Hospice care has gotten a renewed focus, and the Carters’ end-of-life journey is illuminating a complicated story of hospice use in the United States. Different sides of the same coin, the hospice experiences of President and Mrs. Carter are kindling a much-needed conversation around this underused service. ... Barriers to hospice care are not so much financial or geographical. In many ways, the greatest barrier to hospice is emotional. 

El Dorado hospital announces new inpatient hospice care serviceKTVE-TV (El Dorado, AR)December 18, 2023El Dorado, AR—South Arkansas Regional Hospital has announced that their new services of hospice inpatient service. The hospital has partnered with Arkansas Hospice, the state’s largest non-profit provider of hospice care. 

Assisted-suicide bills in Mass. present risks to patients, publicBy Madelyn Hicks, MDWorcester (MA) Telegram & GazetteDecember 17, 2023The Massachusetts Legislature’s Committee on Public Health is considering two bills that would legalize physician-assisted suicide in the commonwealth. As a Massachusetts physician, as a psychiatrist who treats persons with mental health problems, and as a daughter who has dealt with the loss of a parent to a debilitating illness, I am concerned by flaws in these bills that present risks to individual patients and the public. Trust in the health care system would likely be damaged for many, but especially for communities that have experienced health care inequity who have not been consulted on these bills. Disparities already exist in end-of-life care so that Black, Hispanic and LGBTQ patients are less likely to receive palliative care or hospice care. 

Proportion of hospice users declines while industry undergoes shift, NHPCO report findsMcKnight’s Home Care DailyDecember 14, 2023The proportion of Medicare beneficiaries who died on hospice continued to decline in 2021, according to the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization’s 2023 Fact and Figures report. ... Notably, the number of hospice users rose by thousands since 2019, but this growth was unable to outpace the proportion of Medicare beneficiaries who died without receiving any hospice care. 

Study uncovers racial inequalities in hospice utilization, length of stayMcKnight’s Home Care DailyDecember 12, 2023Blacks and Hispanics are less likely to use hospice services, and those who do often have shorter lengths of stay than white patients, according to a new study published in JAMA Health Forum. ... Minority patients also generally experienced shorter hospice lengths of stay. Hispanic patients in particular were more than twice as likely to stay in hospice care for seven days or less, compared to the average white Medicaid beneficiary. Still, short length of stay was relatively common across the board at about 40%, which suggests “room for improvement in referring all Medicaid recipients to hospice earlier in the course of terminal illness,” the study’s authors wrote. As to possible reasons for these disparities, the researchers noted that language barriers, mistrust of hospice programs or cultural differences might be at play. But also, the inequity might also reflect “potential racial biases that affect who a physician is more likely to refer to hospice,” according to the study. Specific, targeted efforts to encourage hospice services for Medicaid and dual-eligible beneficiaries who show low rates of utilization may help to overcome these disparities.

UnitedHealth hit with Medicare Advantage marketing complaintModern HealthcareDecember 7, 2023Advocates for people with disabilities are calling on regulators [to] halt what they describe as misleading Medicare Advantage marketing by UnitedHealth Group. The Center for Medicare Advocacy, National Health Law Program, Disability Rights Connecticut and National Disability Rights Network wrote the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, the Federal Trade Commission and other state and federal officials Thursday to protest UnitedHealthcare advertisements for Dual Eligible Special Needs Plans appearing in Connecticut. The ads target people with both Medicare and Medicaid and spotlight extra benefits from Medicare Advantage plans that state and federal laws already require, the groups wrote. “Unquestionably, this misleading advertising is intended to induce, and has induced, thousands if not tens of thousands of older adults and disabled low-income individuals we are charged with representing to sign up for UnitedHealthcare’s plan, having been led to believe this means they can get extra benefits,” the letter says. UnitedHealth Group did not immediately respond to an interview request.

NPA Says House of Representatives’ Passage of Bill to Provide Veterans Additional Access to the Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly Will Improve Their Lives; Urges Swift Senate PassagePRNewswireDecember 6, 2023Washington, DC—On the second anniversary of the passing of the Honorable Bob Dole (R-KS), the National PACE Association praises the U.S. House of Representatives for passing the Elizabeth Dole Home Care Act (H.R. 542) by a vote of 414-5, which will give veterans increased access to the Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly across the nation. We urge the Senate to pass this bill soon so more veterans can enjoy the highest quality of life possible as they age by receiving any care needed at home or in the community. The legislation would establish formal partnerships between Programs of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE) and nearby Veterans Affairs Medical Centers located within their geographic service areas. This policy change would broadly increase access for veterans to the innovative PACE model of care so they may continue to live at home, despite needing a nursing home level of care.

Shifting focus to MA will alter ‘life as we know it’ for home care providers, experts sayMcKnight’s Home Care DailyDecember 7, 2023Medicare Advantage is disrupting the traditional home care landscape, experts from the Research Institute for Home Care said in a webinar hosted Wednesday afternoon by the National Association for Home Care & Hospice. As MA continues to dominate Medicare and cover those beneficiaries receiving home health, certain trends—such as access issues or shifting utilization rates for services within traditional Medicare—have become more pronounced. “Medicare Advantage is growing, and that’s going to result in a decreased volume in home health claims among traditional Medicare beneficiaries,” Elizabeth Hamlett, senior research associate for evaluation and health economics at KNG Health, said during the webinar about the recently released 2023 RIHC [Research Industry for Home Care] Chartbook. Home health users in general also may become more reflective of the characteristics of MA beneficiaries—which essentially means sicker and poorer, she said. ... However, MA and fee-for-service beneficiaries showed greater variation in their reported access to home health services. “What we’re seeing here is potentially an access problem for Medicare Advantage users,” Hamlett said.