Medicare Hospice Care: A Comparison of Beneficiaries in Nursing Facilities & Beneficiaries in Other Settings

December 2007 The Office of the Inspector General (OIG) sought to determine the percentage of Medicare hospice beneficiaries who reside in nursing facilities and to describe the characteristics of such beneficiaries in comparison with hospice beneficiaries who reside in other settings. The number of beneficiaries receiving hospice care has increased from 580,000 in 2001 to 934,000 in 2006. Medicare spending on hospice care has increased from $3.6 billion in 2001, to $9.2 billion in 2006. The OIG reviewed 2005 Medicare claims data, which is the most current year of complete claims data at the time of . . .