Data / Federal rules / 2026-06604
Medicare Program; FY 2027 Hospice Wage Index and Payment Rate Update and Hospice Quality Reporting Program Requirements
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services published this proposed rule in the Federal Register on April 6, 2026. Comments closed on June 1, 2026.
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What the agency says
This proposed rule would update the hospice wage index, payment rates, and aggregate cap amount for Fiscal Year (FY) 2027. This proposed rule also includes an analysis of Medicare non-hospice spending, including details regarding a hospice service and spending variation index (SSVI), and proposes to require that hospices provide the hospice election statement addendum to all Medicare beneficiaries at the time of hospice election. Additionally, this rule proposes conforming regulation text changes to discharge from hospice care regulations; regulation text changes to the face-to-face encounter regulations; and includes requests for information on community palliative care services; the construction of a hospice specific wage index; and the overlap between hospice and medical aid in dying (MAID). Finally, this rule proposes changes to the Hospice Quality Reporting Program.
Key facts
- Document number
- 2026-06604
- Type
- Proposed rule
- Action
- Proposed rule
- Agency
- Health and Human Services Department; Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services
- Published
- April 6, 2026
- Comments due
- June 1, 2026
- Dates
- To be assured consideration, comments must be received at one of the addresses provided below by June 1, 2026.
- Docket
- CMS-1851-P
- Regulation ID (RIN)
- 0938-AV78
- Code of Federal Regulations
- 42 CFR 418
- Topics
- Health facilities; Hospice care; Medicare; Reporting and recordkeeping requirements
- Pages
- 45
Other documents from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services
Everything from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services · Rules on health facilities · Rules on medicare · Rules on reporting and recordkeeping requirements · Published in April 2026
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