Excelsior Springs, Mo. (March 17, 2025) – Excelsior Springs Hospital has announced the closure of its Home Health and Hospice services, effective April 30, 2025. The difficult decision, which follows years of financial strain, reflects a broader regional and national trend, with similar programs shuttering due to stagnant insurance reimbursements and increasing operational costs.
Hospital CEO Kristen DeHart expressed deep regret over the decision but emphasized that insurance providers had made it nearly impossible to sustain home health and hospice services due to stagnant reimbursement rates and increasing costs. “One insurer has had a rate of $90 per visit for the last 15 years and refuses to budge,” DeHart said. “That amount has to cover a nurse or therapist’s time, supplies, and travel, and it simply doesn’t cover costs anymore.”
The financial strain is further compounded by what DeHart described as unpredictable denials from insurance companies, which sometimes revoke coverage for visits retroactively. This practice has left providers and patients in difficult positions, often forcing last-minute changes to care plans.
A Difficult Farewell
Excelsior Springs Home Health and Hospice has served the region since 1998, providing in-home medical care to patients in Clay, Ray, Clinton, and Jackson counties. The closure will affect approximately 120 patients, with hospital staff actively working to ensure smooth transitions to other providers. The program’s 22 employees were informed of layoffs early last week, but the hospital expects to retain several of the team members in different roles.
“We had staff who have been with us since the beginning, who were understandably devastated, and newer staff who were frustrated that they didn’t have more warning,” DeHart explained. “It’s an emotional time for everyone involved.”
A Growing Trend
Excelsior Springs is not alone in this challenge. In recent years, hospitals in Liberty and Ray County have also shut down their home health and hospice services, struggling with the same financial hurdles. Across the country, small and rural healthcare providers have increasingly found it unfeasible to continue home-based care services under current reimbursement structures.
While the hospital remains committed to serving the community in other capacities, losing this long-standing program is a somber moment for staff and patients.
“We are keeping our employees and families in our prayers,” DeHart said. “This is an unfortunate reality of the way healthcare is shifting, but it doesn’t make it any easier.”
Patients and families needing assistance transitioning to a new provider have been encouraged to contact Tiffany Cook, Director of Home Health and Hospice, for guidance at (816)630-9228.
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