# Plain Language Summary: Hospice Recertification Flexibility Act

Right now, Medicare has special rules that allow hospice doctors and nurses to check in with dying patients using video calls or phone visits instead of always visiting them in person. This bill extends and modifies those rules. Currently, these telehealth visits are only allowed until March 31, 2025, but this bill would keep them available through the end of 2027, giving hospice providers more time to use remote technology for patient check-ins.

However, the bill adds some important restrictions starting in 2026. Telehealth visits won't be allowed in certain situations: if a patient lives in an area where Medicare has frozen new hospice program enrollments, if their hospice provider is under extra government scrutiny for quality problems, or if the doctor or nurse doing the visit isn't properly registered with Medicare. These restrictions are designed to protect patients in areas or with providers that have had problems. Additionally, whenever a hospice provider bills Medicare for a telehealth visit starting in 2026, they'll need to include a special code on their claim that clearly marks it as a remote visit, making it easier for Medicare to track and monitor these encounters.

The practical effect is that hospice patients in well-regulated areas with properly credentialed providers can continue receiving remote check-ins for another couple of years, which can be more convenient and less disruptive than in-person visits. But patients in problem areas or with troubled providers won't have this option, and all telehealth visits will be more clearly documented in the Medicare system.

Hospice Recertification Flexibility Act

Miller, Carol D.

Hospice Recertification Flexibility ActThis bill extends until December 31, 2027, the ability of physicians and nurse practitioners to fulfill certain requirements for hospice care recertification under Medicare via telehealth.Specifically, physicians and nurse practitioners may continue to fulfill the requirement of a face-to-face encounter with the hospice patient via telehealth. Such telehealth encounters must be identified with a specialized claims modifier for purposes of billing.The bill's authorization does not apply (1) in areas in which there has been a moratorium for at least six months on the enrollment of new hospice programs under Medicare, Medicaid, or the Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) due to fraud, waste, or abuse; (2) to providers who are subject to enhanced oversight under Medicare, Medicaid, or CHIP; and (3) to practitioners who are not enrolled as Medicare providers and who have private contracts with Medicare patients that do not meet applicable opt-out requirements.