Hospice Care Statistics

According to the Hospice Association of America and the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization:

• There are over 3,000 hospices participating in the Medicare program in the US, with an additional 200 volunteer hospices. From 1984 to 2006, the number of Medicare participating hospice facilities increased one hundred fold.
• Reports show that more than 893,856 patients received hospice care through Medicare in 2005.
• Medicare certifies more than 90 percent of hospices in the United States. Eighty percent of hospice patients are age 65 or older. There has also been an increase in patients age 75 and older receiving hospice care. 
• Less than one-half of hospice recipients are now cancer patients. The five leading non-cancer conditions of persons who are admitted to hospice are end-stage heart disease, dementia, debility, lung disease, and end-stage renal disease.

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