How to switch hospice or stop hospice care
Choosing a hospice is not a final decision. You can change to another hospice, or stop hospice care, and Medicare's rules spell out how.
Checked against Medicare.gov, CMS and the federal rules on October 20, 2026. General information, not medical or legal advice.
Changing to a different hospice
You can change your hospice once in each benefit period. Changing is not the same as stopping hospice: your hospice benefit continues without a break.
To change, you or your representative file a statement with both the current hospice and the new one. It names both hospices and the date the change takes effect. The new hospice can help with the form.
Stopping hospice care
You can stop hospice care at any time, for example if health improves or you want to try treatment again. You or your representative sign a statement saying you are ending hospice for the rest of the benefit period, with the date it ends. That date cannot be earlier than the day you sign.
No one should ask you to sign a form to stop hospice if you did not ask for it. Do not sign or date it until the actual day you want hospice to end.
What happens to Medicare coverage
- Hospice coverage ends for the rest of that benefit period.
- Medicare coverage you set aside when choosing hospice comes back, including treatment for the illness.
- If you were in Original Medicare, you continue in Original Medicare. If you kept a Medicare Advantage Plan and paid its premiums, the plan keeps covering you.
- You can choose hospice again later for any benefit period you are still eligible for.
When a hospice discharges a patient
A hospice may discharge a patient only for these reasons:
- The patient moves out of the hospice's service area, or transfers to another hospice.
- The hospice determines the patient is no longer terminally ill.
- Discharge for cause, when behavior in the home seriously impairs care. Before that, the hospice must warn the patient, make a serious effort to solve the problem, and make sure the discharge is not because the patient uses necessary services.
A hospice doctor must sign a discharge order. After discharge, Medicare coverage returns as it was before hospice, and the person can choose hospice again if they become eligible.
Source: [3]
Changing the attending doctor
You can also change the attending doctor you named when you chose hospice. You sign a statement with the hospice naming the new doctor and the date the change takes effect.
Source: [6]
Common questions
How many times can you change hospice?
Once in each benefit period. Hospice runs in two 90-day periods and then unlimited 60-day periods.
Can you go back on hospice after stopping?
Yes. If you are still eligible, you can choose hospice again for a later benefit period.
Can a hospice make you stop hospice care?
Only for specific reasons: you moved out of its area or transferred, you are no longer terminally ill, or discharge for cause under strict conditions.
Sources
- 42 CFR 418.30: Change of the designated hospice (eCFR (42 CFR Part 418))
- 42 CFR 418.28: Revoking the election of hospice care (eCFR (42 CFR Part 418))
- 42 CFR 418.26: Discharge from hospice care (eCFR (42 CFR Part 418))
- Medicare Hospice Benefits (publication 02154) (Medicare.gov)
- Hospice care (Medicare.gov)
- 42 CFR 418.24: Election of hospice care (eCFR (42 CFR Part 418))
Find a hospice near you
See Medicare’s family survey results for hospices near a home address.