Palliative Care is specialized medical care for people living with a serious illness. This type of care is focused on providing relief from the symptoms and stress of the illness. The goal is to improve quality of life for both the patient and the family. This care is appropriate at any age and at any stage in a serious illness, and it can be provided along with curative treatment.
Definition of the Center to Advance Palliative Care (CAPC, 2019)
It’s not about prognosis. It’s about need, it’s about relief of suffering, and it’s everybody’s job. – Diane Meier
We recommend you call your health care provider directly and inquire about palliative care options available to you.
Hospital-based (Inpatient) Palliative Care
- Adventist Health Castle Medical Center: 808-263-5253
- Kaiser Permanente Hawaii: 808-432-7100
- Kapi‘olani Medical Center for Women & Children (ask for palliative care consult): 808-983-6000
- Maui Memorial Medical Center, Palliative Care Coordinator: 808-442-5801
- Pali Momi Medical Center (ask for palliative care consult): 808-486-6000
- Queen’s North Hawaiʻi Community Hospital: 808-885-4444
- Straub Medical Center: (ask for palliative care consult): 808-522-4000
- The Queen’s Medical Center: 808-691-4726
- Wilcox Health (ask for palliative care consult): 808-245-1100
Out-patient palliative care – ask for a consult from your doctor
- Queen’s Medical Center Supportive Oncology Clinic
- Kaiser Permanente Hawaii: 808-432-7100
- Kapi‘olani Medical Center for Women & Children, Pediatrics 808-949-9355
- Straub Cancer Center: 1-808-522-3033
- Pali Momi Cancer Center: 808-643-4673
- Wilcox Health (Kauaʻi): 808-245-1100
Community-Based Palliative Care
- Listing of agencies providing community-based palliative care, also known as Supportive or Concurrent Care.
- Hawaiʻi is the first state to comprehensively cover palliative care services for its Med-QUEST (Medicaid) beneficiaries, by adding community palliative care as a preventive service in its Medicaid state plan. Click here to learn more about the benefit that should be available for patients in mid 2025.
Which Insurance plans have a community-based palliative care benefit?
Currently, six insurers offer a community-based palliative care benefit in Hawai‘i. As this list of insurer’s grows, we will update this information.
- HMSA’s ‘Supportive Care’ palliative care benefit: 1-844-378-9997 or 808-948-5377
- Kaiser Permanente: 808-432-7073
- MDX Hawai’i Palliative Care program: mdxhawaii.com. Available on Oʻahu, Kauaʻi and Maui. (MDX is currently the agent for Humana and United Health Care)
- ʻOhana Health Plan 1-888-846-4262
- UHA’s ‘Concurrent Care’ toll free 1-800-458-4600 #300 or 808-532-4006.
- VA PIHCS ‘Concurrent Care’ is for registered Veterans still receiving treatments. Call your VA provider to request a palliative care consult.
HMSA’s palliative care benefit is ‘Supportive Care‘. HMSA Case Management Program: toll free 1-844-378-9997 or 808-948-5377. The goal for this benefit is to improve the quality of life of patients who have a serious or life-threatening disease. Typical goals of care would be to prevent or treat symptoms of a disease, side effects caused by treatment of a disease, and psychological, social, and spiritual problems related to a disease or its treatment.
Under the supportive care benefit, an HMSA member receives comprehensive clinical and psycho-social support while maintaining their usual care. Typically, supportive care includes skilled nursing, case management, psycho-social support, personal care aid and spiritual support. Additionally, most durable medical equipment and comfort medications related to the supportive care diagnosis are covered. Supportive care providers are available by phone or in-person 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
Kaiser Permanente members please call for the latest information: 808-432-7073
MDX Hawai’i This new palliative care program available to eligible members was created to ensure critical support for patients with serious illnesses. Patients have in-home support from a palliative team that includes a palliative medicine physician, nurse practitioner, social worker, registered nurse case manager, pharmacist, and chaplain. MDX will cover the total cost of the program up to 90 days with the potential for an extension. For more information, please refer to their website. Available on Oʻahu, Kauaʻi and Maui.
ʻOhana Health Plan (details coming soon)
UHA’s benefit is called ‘Concurrent Care‘ toll free 1-800-458-4600 #300 or 808-532-4006.
VA PIHCS ‘Concurrent Care‘ is for registered Veterans with advanced illness such as cancer, heart failure or advanced lung disease to be able to access by phone or in their home, medical care focused on alleviating symptoms such as pain, nausea, or anxiety, 24 hours a day, while still receiving treatments. Under this program, the Veteran may continue to visit their doctors, receive treatments such as chemotherapy and visit the emergency room if needed. The actual hands-on care is provided by community hospice agencies, statewide. If interested, call your VA provider to request a palliative care consult.
- Information for caregivers: Key Community Resources for Those with Serious Illness in Hawai‘i compiled by Kokua Mau
PDF file (two pages) Key Hawai‘i Community Resources for Those with Serious Illness
Two videos: One from a patient’s and one from a doctor’s perspective talk about the importance of palliative care
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