,Financing End-of-Life Care: Challenges for An Aging Population

Financing End-of-Life Care: Challenges for An Aging Population


 

Publication Date: February 2003

Publisher: Robert Wood Johnson Foundation

Author(s): L.K. Fleisher; B.J. Austin

Research Area: Health

Type: Report

Abstract:

This report from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation's Changes in Health Care Financing and Organization Initiative explores key findings from a conference on end-of-life care financing.

The report:

* outlines current financing systems for end-of-life care, including Hospice, Medicare, Medicaid, and private insurance and summarizes the challenges facing each of these systems;
* suggests reform of financial incentives for physicians and hospitals to focus on palliative care as well as aggressive inpatient treatment; and
* profiles innovative end-of-life care models, including Blue Cross & Blue Shield programs and the Program for All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE).