The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) on August 1, 2025 released the FY2026 Hospice Wage Index Final Rule.

The final hospice payment update percentage for FY 2026 is 2.6%. The rule also includes a a final change to the admission to hospice, specifically, propose to add the text “or the physician member of the hospice interdisciplinary group” at § 418.25(a) and (b) to indicate that, in addition to the medical director or physician designee, the physician member of the hospice IDG may also determine admission to hospice care.

Additionally, CMS is finalizing that the attestation from the physician or nurse practitioner who conducts the face-to-face must include their signature and date of signing, however based on provider feedback, CMS will allow the face-to-face clinical note to satisfy this requirement.

Despite clear concerns from the sector, CMS made no planned delay for the Hospice Outcomes and Patient Evaluation (HOPE) tool.

LeadingAge will prepare a detailed analysis for members in the coming days.