What Are the Four Levels of Hospice Care?
Hospice is categorized into four levels of care: routine, continuous, general inpatient, and respite. The type of care is determined by the length of time, services and treatments required, caregiver options, as well as the patient’s preferred location.
Routine Hospice Care
This is the most common level of care under hospice. Weekly case manager visits, home health aide visits (if elected by the patient), social worker monthly visits, and spiritual care visits (if elected by the patient) are provided. This type of hospice care also includes:
- all DME
- medications related to terminal illness
- medical supplies
- other patient-elected services including massage and music therapy
Continuous In-Home Hospice Care
This hospice option is designed to honor a patient’s wish to remain at home by providing the care needed to control the patient’s symptoms and alleviate the crisis. A patient qualifies for this level of care when they are experiencing an acute symptom that cannot be managed by the primary caregivers. This is a higher level of care where a clinician is present at the home for more than 8 hours per day per Medicare guidelines.
General Inpatient Hospice Care
This type of hospice care is provided in an inpatient facility (hospital or skilled nursing facility) and involves pain control or symptom management that cannot be managed in other settings. Inpatient hospice is a higher level of care that includes daily clinical visits and facility oversight. It is intended to be short term.
Respite Care
This level of care is a short term relief program for in-home hospice caregivers. It allows the caregiver to rest and recover from the demands of their daily support and services. This Medicare benefit covers patient transport to a Medicare-approved skilled nursing facility or hospital for five consecutive days monthly.