Home Health and Hospice

Section 2207 (a) of the Full-Year Continuing Appropriations and Extensions Act 2025 extended the use of telecommunications technology for certifying a patient’s eligibility for the home health benefit, that the certifying physician must document, or an allowed non-physician practitioner (NPP), has had a face-to-face encounter with the patient. This extension is applicable through September 30, 2025, and temporary removes geographic requirements and expanding originating sites for telehealth services during the extension.

To be covered, hospice services must be reasonable and necessary for the palliation or management of the terminal illness and related conditions.

The Billing Hospice Physician, NP and PA Services job aid assists hospices, physicians, NPs and PAs in how to properly bill these services.

A patient must meet the following five criteria to meet eligibility for home health services.

Submitting appropriate documentation when requested to do so will ensure the HHA can receive appropriate Medicare payment and your patient’s care will not be interrupted or discontinued.

Medicare has changed the physician documentation requirements for certification of home health care for dates of service effective January 1, 2015.

Only care provided by a Medicare certified hospice is covered under the hospice benefit provisions.