Healthcare officials in recent years have projected that the Medicare Part A trust fund would become insolvent by 2019. Now some are saying that the program could run out of money even sooner as a result of the economic downturn.

Advance directive documentation is sharply on the rise in the nation's nursing homes, according to a recent report from the Institute for the Future of Aging Services, a research arm of the American Association of Homes and Services for the Aging.

Medicare hospice payment reform will be necessary to combat the rising cost of hospice, staff members suggested recently to the Medicare Payment Advisory Committee (MedPAC).

Voters in the state of Washington this week approved a ballot-initiative that legalizes medically assisted suicide. It is now the second state in the union, along with neighboring Oregon, to approve such a measure.

Discussions about end-of-life issues between patients, doctors and families improve the quality of life for the terminally ill. They also have "cascading benefits" for both patients and their loved ones, according to new research.

Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) on Wednesday will chair a Senate Special Committee on Aging hearing into the legal environment, laws and barriers surrounding end-of-life decision-making.

Many factors contribute to the end-of-life decision-making process: the opinions of family and friends, financial considerations, and religion. Now, a recent report based on the Terri Schiavo news story finds that the mass media can influence the process as well.

Families and physicians are often left to make end-of-life decisions for patients, and these choices are more complicated than many realize, according to a new study.

Palliative care workers are allowed to sedate some patients with intractable pain at the end of life--but only as a last-resort measure, according to a new ethical guideline approved by the American Medical Association at its most recent annual meeting.