Considering Hospice Care
The last stages of a serious illness can be hard. You may feel like you have lost control over your life and what will happen to you.
Hospice care can show you your options. And knowing your options gives you back some control. It allows you to make decisions about things that are important to you.
You may want to choose hospice care if:
- You have a disease or illness that is expected to shorten your life.
- Treatment for your disease has become more of a burden than a benefit.
- You want to spend the time you have left in a setting of your choice, such as your own home.
- You want to focus on comfort rather than medical treatments.
- You want family and friends to take part in your care.
- You want your loved one who has a serious illness to die comfortably at home.
Who is eligible
Usually, two things must be true for you to be eligible for hospice care:
- Your illness can't be cured. This is called a terminal illness.
- Your doctor expects that you'll live 6 months or less if your illness runs its normal course. You will likely need a form signed by your primary doctor as well as the medical director or physician member of a hospice team.
You don't need to be confined to a bed or in a hospital to benefit from hospice care.
It can be hard for doctors to know how long a person will live. Some people live longer than expected. If you do live longer than 6 months, you can keep having hospice care. If your illness gets better, you can stop getting hospice care. You may no longer qualify for it.
Hospice care is generally paid for by Medicare, Medicaid, and private insurance. Care may also be available to those who can't pay.
Hospice care for special situations
Some people are living with a terminal illness that isn't predictable. They may not necessarily die within 6 months. In fact, they may live for several years. But they may still be eligible for hospice care.
There are guidelines for terminal diseases that have an unpredictable course. People may have hospice care when their disease has reached an advanced stage if they have:
- Cancer.
- AIDS.
- ALS.
- Emphysema.
- Heart failure.
- Kidney disease.
- Alzheimer's disease.
Many people who are living with a disease that has an unpredictable but still terminal course may also want and be able to get hospice care. In some of these cases, Medicare might not cover hospice care costs. Medicare covers the cost of hospice in the last 6 months of life.
The goals of hospice
The goal of hospice is to keep you as comfortable as possible during the time you have left. You will get medical care to provide comfort rather than to prolong life. Hospice workers will keep you as alert and pain-free as they can.
For example, chemotherapy may no longer be used to cure your cancer. But you might get it to reduce pain.
People who want to live as long as possible by any medical means are not a good match for hospice care.
Another goal of hospice is to give you as much control and dignity as possible during the time you have left. For example, most people in hospice can choose to die at home, surrounded by family and friends, rather than in a hospital, hooked up to one or more machines.
Learn more
- Care at the End of LifeCare at the End of Life
- Medicare Hospice BenefitMedicare Hospice Benefit