Literature Review

Blue Ridge Care expands in Fauquier County Hospice News; by Jim Parker; 7/22/26 Blue Ridge Care is expanding its hospice and palliative care services in Fauquier County in its home state of Virginia. The expansion is designed to improve access to care among rural and underserved communities in northern Virginia. It includes enhanced clinical visibility, increased care coordination and strengthened referral partnerships with area hospitals, assisted living and skiled nursing facilities and community organizations. “Fauquier County is a community with deep roots, strong values and a growing need for accessible, quality-trusted care,” said Jason Parsons, president and CEO of Blue Ridge Care.

Sterling Hospice home to close, expected to reopen under new ownership KWQC-6, Sterling, IL; by KWQC Staff; 7/22/26 The Rock River Hospice & Home is closing Aug.1, officials announced Wednesday. The organization, which has been serving people throughout the Sauk Valley area for over 40 years, is closing due to longstanding financial challenges, officials said in a media release. “Changes in healthcare reimbursement, increasing operating costs, and other economic pressures have made it increasingly difficult for standalone hospice providers to remain financially sustainable,” officials said. However, officials said care will continue to be available in the community. 

Will Hyder Hospice reopen in Dover? Strafford County, MGB in talks Foster's Daily Democrat, Dover, NH; by Karen Dandurant; 7/22/26 Hyder Family Hospice House remains closed as talks to reopen it continue between Strafford County commissioners and Mass General Brigham. A spokesperson for Mass General Brigham provided a statement in response to questions from Foster's Daily Democrat. “Mass General Brigham agrees this is a vital community resource, and we have been talking with county officials to learn more," the statement reads. "No decisions have been made at this time.” Strafford County Commission Chair George Maglaras said the commissioners remain confident an agreement will be reached. 

Highest Medicare Hospice Utilization Rates Posted in CY 2025!1520ai / Hospice Analytics press release; by Cordt T. Kassner; 7/20/26Medicare hospice utilization reached a record high of 51.9% in calendar year (CY) 2025, according to preliminary analysis by Cordt T. Kassner, PhD. Utilization measures the share of Medicare deaths that occurred under hospice care – a consistent, conservative metric used in annual reporting... States leading the nation in hospice utilization (all >60%) include: Utah (67.7%), Rhode Island (62.1%), Florida (60.2%), and Wisconsin (60.0%)... As previously published , hospice utilization serves as a key indicator of both access and quality in end-of-life care... Data-driven insights like these remain essential for improving care for patients and families nationwide. [Download the entire article, including two detailed graphs, here.]

Agrace expands hospice services into Dubuque Associated Press | PR Newswire, Dubuque, IA; 7/21/26 Local residents who are in the final months of life have a new choice for high-quality, in-home hospice care. Agrace, the largest Wisconsin-based nonprofit hospice, has expanded west of the Mississippi River for the first time, bringing its services to patients in the city of Dubuque, Iowa. For nearly 50 years, Agrace Hospice Care has provided compassionate end-of-life care to people of all ages across southern Wisconsin, with its headquarters located in Madison. Now, Dubuque-area residents can also choose Agrace for hospice care that comes to them where they live—in private homes, long-term care facilities or any other place they call home. Agrace has opened a local office at 300 Main Street in Dubuque, strengthening its commitment to serving patients, families and health care partners in the community.

The women running death salons for people of color to process grief: ‘It allows for freedom’ The Guardian; by Melissa Hellman; 7/19/26 In a small cream-colored room at a cemetery in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Nefertiti Moor sat at the head of a semicircle. Dressed in black with her long hair in locs, she delivered instructions for the evening discussion. "It's not death counseling or a debate," said Moor. She invited the two women in attendance to talk freely about their cultural associations with dying and grief. Tasha Johnson, who worked in behavioral health, said that she felt desensitized after the recent deaths of several people she knew. She was grappling with "the reality that it can be anyone at any point". The free-flowing conversation about mortality, otherwise known as a death salon or death cafe, was unique in that it was designed for people of color. Death salons for marginalized communities are becoming more common around the country, with practitioners addressing the unique end-of-life concerns of queer, trans, or Black and brown people.

An updated analysis of serious health-related suffering from 2021 to 2023 Journal of Pain and Symptom Management; by Afsan Bhadelia, Xiaoxiao Jiang Kwete, Tania Pastrana, Héctor Arreola-Ornelas, Jinfeng Ding, Oscar Méndez-Carniado, Lukas Radbruch, William E Rosa, Hongliang Tao, Valentina Vargas Enciso, Felicia Marie Knaul; 7/15/26 Results: Between 2021 and 2023, global serious health-related suffering (SHS) grew by 3.9% - outpacing population growth (1.8%) - driven by sharp increases in upper-middle-income countries (UMICs) (5.5%) and high-income countries (HICs) (5.2%) and notable condition-specific increases in SHS associated with lung disease (18.2%), inflammatory disease of the central nervous system (11.4%), and dementia (7.9%). Moreover, increases in SHS due to cancer were particularly stark in LICs (17.8%), while injuries markedly rose in HICs (15.9%).

Nurse practitioner: my patient qualified for hospice. I couldn’t get her there The Examiner News; by Diane Pagan; 7/15/26 ... I’ve been Marie’s primary care nurse practitioner for seventeen months. She was referred to me at the time by her PCP because she could no longer physically manage going into the office. She suffered from dementia and her gait was worsening ... Marie’s daughter chose a hospice agency close to her home. The agency reviewed my referral and notes and accepted Marie into their program. The next step was to send them a Certificate of Terminal Illness (CTI) stating that Marie had a terminal illness with an anticipated life expectancy of 6 months or less. Then the obstacle arose. I couldn’t sign the form. ... The inability of nurse practitioners to sign a CTI does not stem from their lack of education or clinical expertise in determining when a patient is nearing end of life. The restriction is rooted in federal Medicare law, written more than 40 years ago, when the role of nurse practitioners was very different than it is today.

Japan pushes to expand children’s hospices through new consultation service Europe Says, Osaka, Japan; Press Release; 7/15/26 For children with life-limiting illnesses or severe disabilities, even simple experiences such as playing freely or having friends stay overnight can be difficult. Children’s hospices aim to make such experiences possible while also providing support for their families, and efforts are underway to expand the number of these facilities in Japan. Tsurumi Children’s Hospice in Osaka, which opened in 2016, launched a consultation service in April to help people establish similar facilities across the country.

Most Americans prefer to die at home, but the US healthcare system often prevents it ArcaMax; by Karen Lutfey Spencer; 7/14/26 Ask people what they want at the end of their lives, and overwhelmingly the answers will revolve around comfort, dignity and time at home with loved ones. Yet the U.S. healthcare system often thwarts these wishes. Most Americans say they want to die at home, but only one-third do. What could be an intentional last chapter may instead become a roller coaster of hospitalizations and decisions made with incomplete information. News headlines reflect the challenges of facing the end of life in crisis mode. ... Unfortunately, these crisis scenarios are happening to millions of families each year.

Utilization of hospice and palliative care among patients with mental illness: a retrospective cohort study Journal of the American Geriatrics Society; by Sean O'Mahony, Utpol Das, Yuanyi Zhang, Anirudh S. Babu, Mukaila A. Raji, James Gerhart, Yong-Fang Kuo; 7/11/26 Background: Individuals with mental illness (MI) experience premature mortality and health disparities, yet little is known about their access to hospice and palliative care. Conclusions: Mental illnesses were associated with complex hospice utilization patterns characterized by longer length-of-stay, higher likelihood of enrollment far from death, lower likelihood of enrollment within 180 days before death, and lower palliative care consultation use in some groups.

Relationships between advance care planning engagement, patients’ religious practices, and spirituality American Journal of Hospice and Palliative Medicine; by Robyn M. Axel-Adams, MS, MDiv, BCC, HEC-C, Emily Fox Ludden, MDiv, MGS, and Alexia M. Torke, MD; 7/2/26Background: Research has shown that people who consider themselves religious have a lower advance directive (AD) completion rate. However, advance care planning (ACP) includes a broader range of activities that are important in determining medical treatments. ... Conclusions: In contrast to prior findings of lower AD completion in more religious individuals, this study found that higher religiosity and spirituality are associated with higher ACP engagement. These results suggest ACP opportunities offered for religious congregations or spirituality focused communities may be especially successful.