(WASHINGTON, DC, and ALEXANDRIA, VA) – Effective February 14, 2025, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) has ceased the implementation of the Hospice Special Focus Program (SFP) so that CMS may further evaluate the program. This decision is a positive move acknowledging that the current approach is not working as intended. The hospice community has long advocated for strong oversight and patient protections, but the SFP, as implemented, was deeply flawed, unlawful, and harmful to the very patients it was meant to protect.
A multi-state coalition of hospices and hospice associations took legal action in January to challenge the program, citing its misrepresentation of hospice compliance records, misleading data, and jeopardized access to high-quality end-of-life care. The flawed algorithm behind the SFP failed to distinguish fraudulent providers from reputable ones, disproportionately penalized well-established hospices, and ignored repeated warnings from congressional leaders and industry stakeholders. Despite these concerns, CMS moved forward, forcing providers to act in defense of patient care.
Now that CMS is reassessing its approach, there is an opportunity to ensure that oversight efforts truly enhance patient protections without restricting access to trusted hospice providers. The National Alliance for Care at Home (the Alliance) and the National Partnership for Healthcare and Hospice Innovation (NPHI) remain committed to protecting access to high-quality hospice care and ensuring that regulatory oversight is fair, transparent, and aligned with congressional intent. As leading voices in the hospice community, we strongly support accurate oversight and patient protections, but those efforts must be rooted in data-driven, targeted approaches that address real compliance concerns—rather than an arbitrary system that undermines public trust in hospice care.
We welcome this shift in direction and look forward to working with CMS, lawmakers, and stakeholders to develop a fair and effective oversight process that ensures accountability without jeopardizing access to care. Patients and families deserve an evidence-based regulatory framework focused on real problem areas. Our organizations stand ready to be part of a constructive solution that protects both patients and providers while strengthening access to compassionate, high-quality end-of-life care.
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Press Contacts
National Partnership for Healthcare and Hospice Innovation
matt@nphihealth.org
Matt Wilkinson | 801-615-4207
National Alliance for Care at Home
communications@allianceforcareathome.org
Elyssa Katz | 571-281-0220
About the National Partnership for Healthcare and Hospice Innovation
The National Partnership for Healthcare and Hospice Innovation (NPHI) is the leading organization representing nonprofit, community-based hospice and advanced illness care providers. Committed to excellence, NPHI’s members ensure patients and families receive compassionate, high-quality care that respects their goals, values, and dignity. NPHI helps nonprofit providers thrive in an increasingly profit-driven healthcare landscape by advancing innovative, person-centered models and strengthening collaboration with leaders, policymakers, and healthcare partners nationwide. Learn more at nphihealth.org.
About the National Alliance for Care at Home
The National Alliance for Care at Home (the Alliance) is a new national organization representing providers of home care, home health, hospice, palliative care, and other health care services mainly delivered in the home. The Alliance brings together two organizations with nearly 90 years of combined experience: NAHC and NHPCO. NAHC and NHPCO have combined operations to better serve members and lead into the future of care offered in the home. Learn more at www.AllianceForCareAtHome.org.