It’s hard to imagine that our non-system could subvert the concept of Hospice care. But as we know, money make people (and corporations) do funny things. Hospices lobbying:
The nation’s two largest for-profit hospice companies, Vitas and Gentiva, have together spent $1,188,100 on lobbying this year, records show. Their top priority is a bill by Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., that would require the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, which runs the Medicare program, to test a new payment system for two years
and:
Vitas paid $390,000 to Washington lobbyists, according to lobbying reports. The company receives 90% of its revenue from Medicare and Medicaid, according to its filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The document shows they are lobbying because “Medicare and Medicaid programs are increasing pressure to control health care costs and to decrease or limit increases in reimbursement rates.”
Medicynical Note: Lobbying to keep their profits up, Medicare costs up, and to presumably protect themselves from a series of fraud investigations for which they have paid multiple fines. These institutions care more for the “comfort” of their bottom lines than that of their patients.
Medicynic 