In a society that puts a heavy emphasis on curative health care -- and tends to avoid dealing with death altogether -- it's not surprising that most people have little familiarity with hospice care. This is unfortunate, as hospice can make all the difference for families and patients facing the realities of a terminal illness. Part of the problem is that many Americans have an inaccurate view of what, exactly, hospice is. They mistakenly believe that it is only for cancer patients, or that they will have to incur extra expense to use it. But hospice is widely available and Medicare covers costs for 90 percent of those who use it. To learn more about what hospice is and why you should include it in your end of life planning, watch this week's video (embedded with this blog post) or read the full transcript of this week's program. I would also suggest that you watch a video at this site about a woman who decided to give up treatment at the end of life and accept her death.

Mike Magee