Hospice - Patient Eligibility and Certification
In general, anyone who has a life expectancy of six months or less is eligible for hospice. The patient’s doctor and the medical director of the hospice organization must certify that the patient is eligible for hospice. The six-month life expectancy is based on the normal course of the patient’s disease or condition.
Certification is based on the clinical decision of the patient’s primary physician and the hospice medical director. This decision is patient-specific, but factors that are considered may include weight, risk of infection or continual infection, decline in blood pressure, weakness, and decline in lab results. The doctor may also use either the Karnofsky Performance Status Scale or the Palliative Performance Scale.
As long as the patient continues to be certified to have a life expectancy is six months or less, hospice care can continue even if the patient lives longer than expected.
There is no age limit on hospice care eligibility, although the majority of hospice patients are elderly.
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Hospice Eligibility |