Does Medicare cover hospice?

Updated October 6, 2026 · General information, not professional advice

Does Medicare cover hospice? Who qualifies

Your parent qualifies for the Medicare hospice benefit when:

• They have Medicare Part A.
• The hospice doctor and their regular doctor (if they have one) certify they are terminally ill, with a life expectancy of 6 months or less if the illness runs its normal course.
• They accept comfort care (palliative care) instead of care to cure the terminal illness.
• They sign a statement choosing hospice.

Hospice is not only for cancer. People with advanced heart disease, lung disease, dementia, kidney failure and other conditions often qualify.

Hospice can start earlier than many families expect. People often say afterward they wish they had called sooner, because the extra nursing visits, equipment and support help the whole family. You can ask for a hospice evaluation to learn whether your parent qualifies; asking does not commit them to hospice.

What Medicare hospice covers

The hospice team arranges and Medicare pays for care related to the terminal illness, including:

• Doctor and nursing services, including on-call help 24 hours a day.
• Medical equipment such as a hospital bed, wheelchair or oxygen.
• Medical supplies.
• Drugs for pain and symptom control.
• Hospice aide and homemaker services.
• Physical, occupational and speech therapy.
• Social work, dietary counseling, and spiritual counseling.
• Grief support for your parent and family.
• Short-term inpatient care for pain or symptoms that can't be managed at home.
• Short-term inpatient respite care for the caregiver.

Care can be given wherever your parent lives: their home, a family member's home, assisted living, or a nursing home. The hospice team usually includes a doctor, nurse, aide, social worker, chaplain and trained volunteers, and a nurse is available by phone around the clock.

What your parent pays

• $0 for covered hospice care from a Medicare-approved hospice.
• Up to $5 per prescription for pain and symptom drugs.
• 5% of the Medicare-approved amount for inpatient respite care, which can be used for up to 5 days at a time.

If your parent has a Medicare Advantage plan, Original Medicare still pays for hospice. Their plan may still cover care for conditions unrelated to the terminal illness and extra benefits.

What Medicare hospice doesn't cover

• Room and board in a nursing home, assisted living or hospice residence. If your parent lives in a facility, the family or Medicaid pays for room and board.
• Treatment to cure the terminal illness and related conditions.
• Care from providers the hospice team didn't arrange, except your parent's chosen attending doctor.
• Around-the-clock caregivers at home. Hospice visits are scheduled; family or paid caregivers usually provide most daily care.

Medicare still covers care for health problems unrelated to the terminal illness.

If your parent lives at home, plan who will provide day-to-day care between hospice visits: family members, paid caregivers, or a mix. The hospice social worker can help you find support.

How long hospice lasts and changing your mind

Hospice is given in benefit periods: two 90-day periods, then an unlimited number of 60-day periods. A hospice doctor recertifies at each period, so your parent can receive hospice longer than 6 months if they still qualify.

Your parent can stop hospice at any time and return to regular Medicare coverage, for example to try a new treatment, and can choose hospice again later if eligible. They can also change hospice providers once per benefit period.

Your parent's regular doctor can stay involved as the attending doctor while they're on hospice.

How to start hospice

1. Ask your parent's doctor whether hospice is appropriate and request a referral.
2. Compare Medicare-approved hospices on Medicare's Care Compare, and ask about after-hours response times and how often nurses visit.
3. Ask whether the hospice provides continuous care at home during a crisis.

seniorcare.si can show licensed hospice providers near your ZIP code.