Quick answers
- Does Medicare cover hospice in Oregon?
- Yes. Part A covers hospice when your hospice doctor and your regular doctor certify a life expectancy of six months or less and you choose comfort care instead of treatment to cure your illness.
- What do I pay for hospice?
- Nothing for hospice care from a Medicare-approved hospice, except a small copayment for each outpatient prescription for pain and symptoms and 5% of the Medicare-approved amount for inpatient respite care.
- Does Medicare pay for Oregon's Death with Dignity Act?
- No. A 1997 federal law (42 U.S.C. 14402) bars Medicare and other federal programs from paying for medication meant to cause death. Hospice and your other care stay covered.
- Does Medicare pay for advance care planning?
- Yes. Part B covers voluntary advance care planning. You pay nothing when it's part of your yearly Wellness visit and your provider accepts assignment.
- What is a POLST?
- A medical order, signed by a clinician, that records your choices about CPR and other life-sustaining treatment. It is meant for people with serious illness or frailty, and Oregon keeps a statewide registry of POLST forms.
Oregon voters passed the nation's first Death with Dignity Act in 1994, and Oregon has been the founding POLST program since the early 1990s. End-of-life care here often combines Medicare hospice, palliative care, Oregon's advance directive and POLST forms, and, for some people, the Death with Dignity Act.
This page covers Medicare's role: what Medicare covers at the end of life, what it doesn't, and how the Oregon-specific options fit with your Medicare benefits.
The Medicare hospice benefit
Medicare Part A covers hospice when all of these are true:
- Your hospice doctor and your regular doctor (if you have one) certify that you're terminally ill, with a life expectancy of six months or less.
- You accept comfort care (palliative care) instead of care to cure your illness.
- You sign a statement choosing hospice instead of other Medicare-covered treatments for your terminal illness and related conditions.
Once you choose hospice, the benefit should cover everything you need for the terminal illness: nursing and doctor services, medical equipment and supplies, drugs for pain and symptom control, aide and homemaker services, therapy, social work, dietary and spiritual counseling, short-term inpatient and respite care, and grief support for your family.
What you pay with a Medicare-approved hospice:
- Nothing for hospice care itself.
- A small copayment for each outpatient prescription for pain and symptom control.
- 5% of the Medicare-approved amount for inpatient respite care, never more than the Part A inpatient deductible.
- Room and board when you get hospice at home or live in a nursing home, except for short inpatient or respite stays the hospice team arranges.
Hospice is given in benefit periods: two 90-day periods, then an unlimited number of 60-day periods. A hospice doctor recertifies you after a face-to-face visit, and you can change hospice providers once in each period.
Important: what choosing hospice means
When you elect hospice, Medicare stops paying for treatment meant to cure your terminal illness. Original Medicare still pays for covered care for health problems that aren't related to it (for example, a broken hip), with the usual deductibles and coinsurance. You can stop hospice at any time and go back to your regular Medicare coverage. If you have a Medicare Advantage plan, Original Medicare pays for hospice, and your plan keeps covering care unrelated to your terminal illness.
To compare Medicare-approved hospices near you, use Medicare's Care Compare tool (linked in the sources below).
Palliative care vs. hospice
- Palliative care is comfort-focused care you can get at any stage of a serious illness, alongside treatment meant to cure it, such as chemotherapy or surgery. Medicare covers palliative services under Part A and Part B like other care, with the usual cost sharing.
- Hospice is comfort care for people with a life expectancy of six months or less who are no longer seeking a cure for the terminal illness. It is a separate Part A benefit with its own rules and costs.
Advance care planning, POLST and advance directives
Medicare Part B covers voluntary advance care planning: time with your doctor or other provider to talk about your wishes and fill out forms. You pay nothing if it's part of your Welcome to Medicare or yearly Wellness visit and your provider accepts assignment. As part of other care, the Part B deductible and 20% coinsurance apply.
Oregon uses two main forms:
- Oregon Advance Directive for Health Care: names your health care representative and records your wishes. It is for any adult. The current form was adopted by the 2021 Legislature (Senate Bill 199); a form you use must be substantially the same. See how to make an advance directive in Oregon.
- POLST (Portable Orders for Life-Sustaining Treatment): a medical order signed by a clinician for people with serious illness or frailty, covering CPR and other treatment choices. Emergency responders follow it, and the Oregon POLST Registry, operated by OHSU for the state, keeps copies they can check. See POLST and Medicare in Oregon.
Oregon's Death with Dignity Act and Medicare
The Death with Dignity Act (ORS 127.800 to 127.897) lets an adult who can make and communicate health care decisions, and who has a terminal illness expected to cause death within six months, request a prescription for medication to end their life, which they must take themselves. An attending and a consulting physician must confirm the diagnosis, and the patient must make two oral requests at least 15 days apart plus a signed, witnessed written request. Since a 2023 amendment, patients don't need to be Oregon residents.
Medicare does not pay for the medication. The Assisted Suicide Funding Restriction Act of 1997 (42 U.S.C. 14402) bars federal funds, including Medicare and Medicaid, from paying for items or services whose purpose is to cause or assist in causing a death. Medicare keeps covering hospice, doctor visits, symptom-control drugs and all your other covered care.
This page is information, not medical, legal or ethical advice. For the full rules, see Death with Dignity Act and Medicare.
Medicare home health care
Medicare Part A and Part B cover home health care if you're homebound and need part-time or intermittent skilled nursing or therapy, ordered by your doctor and given by a Medicare-certified home health agency. Many seriously ill people use home health before they choose hospice.
You pay nothing for covered home health services. For medical equipment, you pay 20% of the Medicare-approved amount after the Part B deductible ($283 in 2026). Home health doesn't cover 24-hour care, or help with daily activities when that is the only care you need.
Skilled nursing and long-term care
Part A covers skilled nursing facility care for up to 100 days per benefit period after a qualifying inpatient hospital stay of at least three days, when you need daily skilled care. Days 1 to 20 cost nothing; for days 21 to 100 you pay $217 a day in 2026. Long-term custodial care in a nursing home is not covered by Medicare. The Oregon Health Plan (Medicaid) pays for it for people who qualify; see the Oregon Health Plan and Medicare.
If you live in a nursing facility and choose hospice, Medicare pays for the hospice care. Room and board is paid by you, or by OHP if you qualify for Medicaid long-term care.
The Part A benefit period
Part A uses benefit periods for hospital and skilled nursing care. A benefit period starts the day you're admitted as an inpatient and ends after you've gone 60 days in a row without inpatient hospital or skilled nursing care. Each new benefit period starts with a new Part A deductible ($1,736 in 2026), so someone with repeated hospital stays can owe it more than once a year. A Medigap policy can pay some or all of the Part A deductible; see Medigap in Oregon. CMS announces the 2027 amounts each fall; see Medicare costs in 2027.
Where to get help in Oregon
- 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227, TTY 1-877-486-2048): hospice eligibility, benefits and Care Compare.
- Oregon POLST Registry: 1-877-367-7657, to ask whether a POLST is on file.
- ODHS Aging and People with Disabilities (the state aging and disability agency): 1-855-673-2372, for Medicaid long-term care, in-home services and Oregon Project Independence.
- Oregon Health Authority: Death with Dignity Act rules and annual reports.
- BFCC-QIO (Acentra Health): 1-888-305-6759 (TTY 1-855-843-4776), if you think hospice, home health or skilled nursing care is ending too soon. See Medicare appeals in Oregon.
- Social Security: 1-800-772-1213, to report a death or ask about survivor benefits.
If you'd like to review how your Medicare coverage handles hospice, prescriptions or a Medigap policy, you can request a call from a licensed insurance agent, or meet licensed insurance agents in Oregon.
Related guides
Medicare Part A
Hospital, skilled nursing and hospice benefits.
POLST and Medicare in Oregon
Medical orders for serious illness.
Death with Dignity Act and Medicare
What the law requires and what Medicare pays.
Oregon Health Plan and Medicare
Long-term care through OHP.
Sources
- Medicare.gov — Hospice care
- Medicare.gov — Advance care planning
- Medicare.gov — Home health services
- Medicare.gov — Skilled nursing facility care
- Medicare.gov — Care Compare
- 42 U.S.C. 14402 — Restriction on use of federal funds (via Cornell LII)
- Oregon Health Authority — Death with Dignity Act FAQs
- OHSU — Oregon POLST Registry
- Oregon POLST Program
- Oregon Health Authority — Advance Directive Adoption Committee (SB 199 form)
- Social Security — What should I do when someone dies?
Every question in this guide
Frequently asked questions
Does Medicare pay for hospice in Oregon?
Yes. Medicare Part A covers hospice care when your hospice doctor and your regular doctor (if you have one) certify that you're terminally ill with a life expectancy of six months or less, and you choose comfort care instead of care to cure your illness. You pay nothing for hospice care from a Medicare-approved hospice, apart from a small copayment for outpatient prescriptions and 5% coinsurance for inpatient respite care.
Does Medicare pay for advance care planning?
Yes. Medicare Part B covers voluntary advance care planning, such as talking with your provider about an advance directive or a POLST. You pay nothing if it's done during your Welcome to Medicare or yearly Wellness visit and your provider accepts assignment; as part of other care, the Part B deductible and 20% coinsurance apply.
Does Medicare cover respite care for hospice caregivers?
Yes. If your hospice team arranges it, Medicare covers a short inpatient respite stay in a Medicare-approved facility so your caregiver can rest. You may pay 5% of the Medicare-approved amount for the respite stay.
Can I keep seeing my own doctor on Medicare hospice?
Yes, if you choose your regular doctor or nurse practitioner as your attending medical professional when you elect hospice. That person works with the hospice team on your care.
Does Medicare cover Oregon's Death with Dignity Act?
No. The Assisted Suicide Funding Restriction Act of 1997 (42 U.S.C. 14402) bars federal funds, including Medicare and Medicaid, from paying for items or services whose purpose is to cause a death. Medicare continues to pay for hospice and all your other covered care.
What happens to Medicare when someone dies?
Medicare coverage ends at death. In most cases the funeral director reports the death to Social Security; family members can also call Social Security at 1-800-772-1213. Also tell any Medicare Advantage, Part D or Medigap plan so premiums stop.
Does Medicare pay for long-term nursing home care?
No. Medicare covers up to 100 days of skilled nursing facility care per benefit period after a qualifying hospital stay, with daily coinsurance from day 21. Long-term custodial care is paid through Medicaid (the Oregon Health Plan) for people who qualify, or privately.
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