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The Hospice CoPs are coming.

The number-one issue currently facing the hospice industry is the expected release of the proposed Hospice Conditions of Participation (CoPs) by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) in May 2008. It is expected that the final rule will be posted to the Federal Register, and if it follows the process of other final rules, hospices will need to demonstrate compliance with all regulations within 60 days of the posting date. This is a major event for hospice providers, and it is understandable that much of the industry faces the release with some trepidation. The reader of this article should remember that the proposed Medicare hospice CoPs are just that—proposed. The hospice industry submitted abundant comments to CMS during the 60-day comment period after the proposed rule was published, and changes are expected when the final rule is published. The current hospice CoPs were originally distributed by the federal government December 16, 1983 (48 FR 56008) and amended December 11, 1990 (55 FR 50831), then amended again November 22, 2005 (70 FR, 70532). However, many of the current CoPs have remained unchanged since their inception. As hospice care has evolved in the past 25 years, hospice practice and patients have changed. Consequently, many of the current regulations are in need of an update for the current hospice population. The proposed regulations are presented in 2 sections (subparts). Subpart C focuses on conditions of participation for patient and family care, and Subpart D focuses on conditions of participation in terms of hospice organization and administration.