Public Policy and End-of-life Care

End-of-life public policy has the potential to affect everyone. The purpose of this article is to provide an overview of recent significant policy activity. The authors begin by reviewing the Medicare and Medicaid hospice benefit and the Patient Self-Determination Act, highlighting state-level developments, and noting significant court cases. They then discuss common concerns with Medicare, advance directives, hospice, and pain management and provide proposed remedies for the concerns. The article ends with recommendations for advocacy by behavioral and social science professionals.