Samaritan is committed to honoring the South Jersey community’s Veterans and their families by providing hospice care that recognizes their distinctive needs. These needs may be influenced by: Combat or non-combat experience, POW experiences, service-connected injuries or illness, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), feelings about service and service mission, and more.
These life experiences may greatly affect a Veteran’s physical, psychological, and spiritual comfort at the end of life. For this reason, as you or someone you care about enters our care, our trained professionals will include information about your military history into the medical history. This allows our veteran-specific hospice care plan to reflect the individual needs and wishes of veterans as we work toward the most peaceful transition for both patient and family caregivers.
Samaritan is New Jersey’s oldest and largest hospice care provider, as well as the only provider in the state that is in collaboration with the National Partnership for Healthcare and Hospice Innovation to provide an advanced cardiac hospice care.
Hospice care in South NJ can be provided wherever the veteran lives, including:
Keep in mind, however, that receiving hospice care in VA facilities requires prior enrollment for health care services.
Hospice care is a benefit for veterans who are in the final phase of their lives — typically six months or less in a doctor’s best judgment if the illness follows its normal course. A team approach to end-of-life care helps veterans live each day as fully and comfortably as possible, and provides support for the family or friends caring for the veteran. Call us now to learn about hospice eligibility: (800) 229-8183.
Samaritan accepts VA, Tricare, Medicare, Medicaid and most commercial insurance plans to pay for Veterans hospice care. Learn more >>
Respectful Inquiry, Compassionate Listening, Grateful Acknowledgment
Learn more about Samaritan’s Veterans Hospice program by watching the video below:
Hospice and palliative care are part of the Veterans Health Administration’s Standard Medical Benefits Package for all veterans who have enrolled with the VA and who meet the clinical criteria for hospice care. Currently, only one of every three veterans has enrolled in the VA to receive benefits.
The VA will provide for or purchase needed hospice and palliative care services from a community provider such as Samaritan for all enrolled Veterans, whether those services are needed in an inpatient setting or in the home. Contrary to common belief, the majority of veterans (96%) receive direct care at the end of life from community healthcare providers, such as Samaritan, rather than from the Department of Veterans Affairs (4%). There are no copays for veteran hospice care whether it is directly provided by VA or an organization with a VA contract.
You may qualify for VA health care benefits and services:
NOTE: We encourage you to apply for VA health benefits before you are coping with a healthcare crisis. This will provide you and your family with broader choices and the opportunity to access services you have earned through your service. To apply for VA health care benefits, contact your County Veterans Service Officer or apply online at www.1010ez.med.va.gov.
As a veteran, you may choose to access hospice care through VA benefits (if you have enrolled and qualify), or through alternative insurers such as Medicare, Medicaid, Tricare, or commercial insurers. If you are a VA-enrolled veteran who chooses to access hospice care through Medicare or another insurer, you can still get other VA health care and benefits to which you are entitled at the same time.
In 2016, Samaritan was proud to provide hospice care for 439 veterans and their families. The cost of some of these veterans’ care was paid through VA; others opted to use their Medicare, Medicaid, or commercial insurer as the primary payor. With all the available choices, the bottom line is that no veteran or family member should let the issue of coverage prevent you from seeking hospice care when you need it.
VA Medical Center Philadelphia
3900 Woodland Ave.
Philadelphia, PA 19104
(215) 823-5800
VA Medical Center Wilmington
1601 Kirkwood Highway
Wilmington, DE 19805
(302) 994-2511
Samaritan serves more than 500 veterans through our hospice care program each year. Our goal is to provide each veteran patient in our care with a special blanket. Uniquely designed to recognize their service, this blanket will be a warm expression of our gratitude for their selfless sacrifice for the common good. Learn more about, or donate towards, Samaritan’s Veteran blankets.
Samaritan proudly participates in We Honor Veterans (WHV). This pioneering program was created by the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization (NHPCO) in collaboration with the Department of Veteran Affairs (VA). Its purpose is to empower hospice and other healthcare providers across America to meet the unique needs of seriously ill veterans and their families.
Within the WHV program, there are four levels – or stars – of distinction that veteran’s hospices can earn. The goal of these star levels is to establish a common core of “best practices” to ensure that those who have served our country receive the most effective care. Samaritan’s hospice care for veterans, and community education/outreach, has earned WHV’s highest four-star level – . This distinction has earned us the ability to display the four-star logo above.
Samaritan also actively participates in the Hospice Veterans Partnership of New Jersey, an affiliate of the Homecare & Hospice Association of New Jersey. Hospice Veterans Partnership’s mission is to establish a network of hospice and VA professionals, veterans, volunteers, and other interested organizations joining forces to provide quality services through the end of life for New Jersey’s veterans and their families.