The impact of mergers/alliances on hospice care.
Since its inception, hospice care in the U.S. has transcended from a "movement" into the mainstream of healthcare. Hospice care consumes about $1.8 billion of the federal healthcare pie, making it one of the smallest providers. Yet hospice has been one of the most successful providers in terms of patient satisfaction and cost control. The Hospice Model as structured by Medicare provides cost savings primarily due to the substation of homecare for hospital stays in the last months of life.