Journal of palliative medicine
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Comparative Study Observational Study
Cost savings and enhanced hospice enrollment with a home-based palliative care program implemented as a hospice-private payer partnership.
In the United States, 5% of the population is responsible for nearly half of all health care expenditures, with a large concentration of spending driven by individuals with expensive chronic conditions in their last year of life. Outpatient palliative care under the Medicare Hospice Benefit excludes a large proportion of the chronically ill and there is widespread recognition that innovative strategies must be developed to meet the needs of the seriously ill while reducing costs. ⋯ Palliative care programs partnered with community hospice providers may achieve cost savings while helping provide care across the continuum.