Difference Between Hospice and Palliative Care
Understand the key differences between hospice care and palliative care, and how Generation Care supports patients at every stage in Los Angeles County.
Many families searching for end-of-life care in Los Angeles wonder about the difference between hospice and palliative care. While both focus on comfort and quality of life, they serve different needs and stages of illness.
What is Palliative Care?
Palliative care offers a more limited set of services by a team that works in collaboration with other community medical providers. The palliative team does not assume full authority over a patient's care but coordinates symptom management alongside existing treatments.
What is Hospice Care?
Hospice care allows for a more expansive set of services. Hospice teams assume full authority over a patient's care plan when curative treatment is no longer the goal. Hospice is appropriate when a physician certifies a life expectancy of six months or less if the illness runs its normal course.
Key Differences
- Timing: Palliative care can begin at diagnosis. Hospice begins when curative treatment is no longer pursued.
- Treatment focus: Palliative care may be provided alongside curative treatment. Hospice focuses on comfort rather than cure.
- Care setting: Both can be delivered at home, in assisted living, or in skilled nursing facilities.
- Coverage: Both Medicare and Medi-Cal cover hospice benefits. Palliative coverage varies by plan.
Generation Care provides both hospice care and palliative care throughout Los Angeles and Ventura County. Contact us to discuss which option is right for your family.