CMS Pauses Hospice Special Focus Program for Further Evaluation

On February 14, 2025, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) stopped introducing the Hospice Special Focus Program (SFP) to conduct a more thorough assessment. This break is a necessary step to recognize that the program is not achieving its intended goals in its current format. The hospice community has long supported strong patient oversight and safeguards, but the designed SFP was highly flawed and had unintended negative consequences for those who wanted to protect it. 

In January, a coalition of hospice providers and industry connections from several states, legal action on programs, reliance on misleading compliance data, inaccuracies in assessing providers, and high quality. We expressed concern about inaccuracies in restricting access to hospice care. The program’s false methodology cannot distinguish between legitimate providers and bad actors and is well-established hospices that have been mistakenly punished. Despite repeated warnings from Congressional leaders and industry experts, CMS was forced to promote the program and take steps to ensure patient care for healthcare providers.

 If CMS reevaluates its approach, it reevaluates patient protection without restricting access to well-known hospice providers. The in-home alliance for national care is obliged to work for the fair and transparent response intentions of Congress. The monitoring mechanism must be based on accurate data and targeting strategies. These are more likely to address actual compliance challenges than broad arbitrary, voluntary measures that undermine confidence in hospice supply. CMS, Political Decisions – Cooperation with manufacturers and stakeholders determines a balanced and effective supervision framework. Patients and families focus on acquiring evidence-based regulatory systems and addressing real concerns. The hospice community supports guidelines that protect both patients and healthcare providers, while also ensuring ongoing access to a caring, high-quality living supply at the end of life.