A hospice is a facility with a home-like setting that provides short term stay for those who are terminally ill.
A person who is terminally ill is generally describe as having medical condition that would lead to death within 12 months.
Hospice care enables patients to live out their last days comfortably with volunteer caregivers and professional medical staff to attend to their unique needs.
Even with the specialized care provided to patients, the accommodation costs are usually more affordable than staying at a hospital.
Most basic health insurance plans don’t provide any coverage for hospice care.
However, these types of benefits might be available as riders and add-ons which requires additional premium payment.
Benefits can also be structured on a per day cash payout for each day stayed in a hospice, up to a certain claim limit.
Even hospice stays tend to be more economical that hospitalization stays, insured patients can often end up spending extended time in a hospital environment simply because their insurance do not feature any hospice coverage.
The outlook is that insurers will eventually realize that economics and common sense behind hospice and integrate related benefits into their basic medical insurance policies.
