So the buzz is around the office today about new Medicare Part D changes that are going to majorly and adversely affect patients and their families, and also be the death knell for hospices throughout the country.
See the following link for the actual final determination and new rules that are supposed to be effective May 1, 2014:
The Readers' Digest version of this new policy is that patients, once enrolled onto hospice services, will only be covered for medications directly related to the palliation and symptom management of their illness. In example, Sally Jones is admitted to hospice with a Dx: Cervical Cancer. Medicare will now only cover medications directly related to this illness (e.g. Analgesics, Anti-Emetics, Laxatives/Stool Softeners, Anti-Anxiety). But if Sally Jones also suffers from COPD and is also s/p CABG, medications related to those diagnoses will no longer be covered under Medicare Part D and will become the liability of the patient or the hospice provider if they so choose to cover the medications.
So what this means is that hospice patients facing terminal illness for one problem may very well become at greater risk secondary to other comorbidities than their primary diagnosis. Additionally, this will add financial stressors to families already dealing with terminal illness. Coupled with the cuts already hitting hospice providers last year, this is surely going to sink some hospices altogether. And we'e already seeing patients getting their rejection notices for medications two months ahead of this change being implemented.
I'm curious to know thoughts on this. Is this buzzing within your own work culture? Better freshen up those resumes, ladies and gents, because this could be a game changer.
