LARKSPUR, California—By the Bay Health announced the appointment of Skelly Wingard, RN, MSN as chief executive officer for the organization. The appointment, which will be effective June 19, follows a nationwide search for a new leader to fill the role currently held by Kitty Whitaker, who announced her retirement in February of 2022.
BRENTWOOD, Tennesse—Compassus, a national provider of home-based health care services, recently received the first Age-Friendly Care at Home certification for hospice in the country, awarded by Community Health Accreditation Partners. CHAP is a nationally approved accrediting organization that assesses the quality of health care providers.
LAFAYETTE, Louisiana–A federal jury has returned a guilty verdict against Kristal Glover-Wing, 50, of Broussard, Louisiana, for one count of conspiracy to commit health care fraud and three counts of health care fraud following a trial that lasted nearly four weeks, announced United States Attorney Brandon B. Brown. Dr. Gary M. Wiltz and Dr. Charles H. Louis were each acquitted on their charges in the indictment. Judge Robert R. Summerhays presided over the trial.
Hospice patients will be able to receive concurrent care with Medicare Advantage as the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) extended its Value-Based Insurance Design for calendar years 2025 through 2030. The extension also grants health plans the ability to restrict Medicare Advantage Organizations (MAOs) from using out-of-network providers in 2026.
Birmingham, ALABAMA—A new report released last month by the National Association for Home Care & Hospice (NAHC) and the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization (NHPCO) found that Medicare spending for patients who received hospice care was some $3.5 billion less than it would if they had not gotten that care. HomeCare talked with NAHC President Bill Dombi about the report and why getting Americans on board with hospice is so important.
Alexandria, Virginia and Washington, D.C.—Medicare spending for patients who received hospice care was some $3.5 billion less than it would if they had not gotten that care, according to new research released Wednesday, March 22.
Patients receiving care from for-profit hospices have substantially worse care experiences than patients who receive care from not-for-profit hospices, according to a new RAND Corporation study.
LARKSPUR, California—By the Bay Health CEO Kitty Whitaker has announced plans to retire in the spring of 2023.
Whitaker, a Corte Madera resident, joined the nonprofit organization as a hospice nurse in 1996 (when it was known as Hospice of Marin). Over her 27-year career, she took on various roles in clinical leadership, became chief operating officer and in 2014 was appointed CEO.
KANSAS CITY, Missouri— Husch Blackwell’s Hospice practice team handled a record number of hospice audits during 2022, part of a surge in audits witnessed by the industry, the company said. Attorneys at Husch Blackwell worked on more than 200 audit matters for hospices throughout 2022, a number the group anticipates will remain steady or potentially increase in the coming year.
WASHINGTON—The four national hospice provider organizations—LeadingAge, the National Association for Home Care & Hospice (NAHC), the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization (NHPCO) and the National Partnership for Healthcare and Hospice Innovation (NPHI)—the
WASHINGTON, DC—The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) should require hospice care providers to report all allegations of abuse and neglect immediately to survey agencies, regardless of whether the alleged perpetrator is affiliated with the hospice, the Government Accountability Office (GAO) urged in a new report.
The Department of Health and Human Services neither agreed nor disagreed with GAO's recommendation.
SPARTANBURG, S.C. (September 27, 2022)—Agape Care Group, a portfolio company of Ridgemont Equity Partners and a leading hospice and palliative care provider in the Southeast, announced it has acquired GHC Hospice (GHC). Founded in 2014, GHC is a hospice care provider serving 25 counties in Georgia and South Carolina with a reputation for superior clinical excellence.
TROY, Mich. (August 30, 2022)—Residential Hospice, a division of Graham Healthcare Group, announced that it has acquired Comfort Hospice of St. Louis, and Grace Hospice of Maumee, Ohio from U.S. Medical Management. This expands the footprint of Residential Hospice into Missouri and Ohio; U.S. Medical Management will retain their hospice locations outside of St. Louis and Maumee.
CLEARWATER, Fla. (August 22, 2022)—Empath Health and Hospice of Marion County (HMC) announced that they have signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to begin the process of affiliating HMC with Empath Health. Empath Health currently has three hospice organizations operating within its network including Tidewell Hospice, Suncoast Hospice and Suncoast Hospice of Hillsborough.
DALLAS (July 5, 2022)—Enhabit Home Health & Hospice, a national home health and hospice provider, announced it is now an independent, publicly traded company following the completion of its spin-off from Encompass Health Corporation. Enhabit will began trading on the New York Stock Exchange on July 1, 2022, under the ticker symbol "EHAB."
DALLAS (May 24, 2022)—Aveanna Healthcare, a diversified homecare platform focused on providing care to medically complex, high-cost patient populations, recently announced the implementation of the Homecare Homebase (HCHB) and Medalogix platforms across the company’s home health and hospice divisions. Aveanna’s home health and hospice divisions have expanded to over 90 locations across the U.S.
