Ind. IHCP Hospice Services Provider Reference Module, Section 1, General Inpatient Hospice Care

Federal regulations at 42 CFR 418.110 et seq. specify the condition of participation for general inpatient

hospice care and should be reviewed in their entirety. All condition-of-participation requirements must be

met, whether a hospice provides general inpatient care in its own inpatient unit or by arrangement with

another entity. Unless the nursing facility is a skilled nursing facility (SNF) in a hospital sett ing, most

nursing facilities do not meet the skilled nursing requirement for this level of hospice care. Specifically,

the nursing facility must provide 24-hour RN coverage, and the RN at the nursing facility must be capable

of providing the pain management required for this level of service. The presence of an RN on staff at the

nursing facility for 24 hours per day is not sufficient to meet the requirem ents at 42 CFR 418.110 et seq.