Government allocates 5.85 million euros for home hospice care

The Latvian government has allocated 5.85 million euros from contingency funds to provide hospice care at home for adults from August through November, LSM reports. The decision was approved on Tuesday under an order prepared by the Ministry of Welfare.

Home hospice care is available to adults whose fourth or fifth-level hospital doctors’ council has determined that palliative care is needed at home and whose expected life expectancy is up to six months.

The additional funding is needed because more people are using the service. The Ministry of Welfare estimates that 3,296 unique clients will receive hospice care in 2026, 39 percent more than the 2,373 originally planned. An average of 981 people a month could receive the service, compared with the initial estimate of 674.

The ministry said existing funding was sufficient to settle payments with service providers for care delivered through July, but would not cover services provided from August onward. The state budget had allocated 11.86 million euros for hospice care this year, while total spending is now forecast at 17.71 million euros.

The funding covers social care, technical aids and psychosocial rehabilitation. Psychosocial rehabilitation is also available to people living or previously living in the same household as the patient, relatives and others involved in the patient’s care.

Home hospice care combines a healthcare component financed by the Ministry of Health with a complementary social care component financed by the Ministry of Welfare. Providers are paid according to the amount of care actually delivered, without predetermined quotas.

State funding for technical aids, psychosocial rehabilitation and social care is capped at 52.20 euros per client per day. In some cases, such as when a patient is temporarily staying in a hospital or social care institution, the funding is capped at 39.15 euros per day and is provided for no more than 14 days.