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1. What Grief Support services are available?

Individual and group counseling for adults, families and children. In addition, we have bereavement camps, retreats, and community memorials.

2. When are counseling sessions offered?

Counseling appointments are scheduled Monday through Friday.

3. How long are the sessions?

Grief counseling sessions typically last 45 - 60 minutes.

4. What other type of Grief Support do you offer?

We offer crisis support for schools and businesses when there has been an unexpected death.

5. Does a family member have to be on Hospice to receive Grief Support?

No, grief support is available to anyone in the community.

6. What is the phone number for the Grief Support Department?

The Grief Support team can be reached at 772-403-4530.

7. Where are you located?

Our counseling services are offered at three convenient locations: 1201 SE Indian Street, Stuart, FL 34997; 9069 Bridge Road, Hobe Sound, FL 33455; and 5000 Dunn Road, Fort Pierce, FL 34981.

8. Do you accept insurance?

Grief support is not covered by insurance.  Our services are available thanks to the generosity of our community.

9. Do you offer community education?

Yes, we can provide Grief and Loss Education to businesses and community organizations.

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1. Who decides if a patient needs hospice care?

Eligibility for hospice is determined by the patient’s attending physician and the hospice medical director.

2. Do you know in advance how long a hospice patient will need care?

Hospice physicians exercise their best clinical judgment when determining length of stay; however, at the initial admission to hospice, two physicians have determined that the patient has six months or less to live should the disease continue upon its expected course.

Hospice has certification periods: two 90-day periods and one 30-day period. The hospice medical director reviews the patient’s status at weekly IDT meetings and must determine that the patient is terminally ill having 6 months or less to live at the end of each certification period.

3. Do I need to get my doctor to refer me to hospice care or can I call on my own?

You are welcome to call Treasure Coast Hospice at any time to learn more about how we can help with your care plan. Our staff can explain our services and help you decide if hospice care is the best option for you at this time. We will work with your doctor so that your transition to hospice is a smooth one and all the information that the doctor needs us to have is known to the hospice staff.

4. What if I am in hospice care and I get better?

Patients can start to feel better under hospice care because their pain and stress are both relieved. If you start to feel well enough to leave hospice care, we coordinate with your doctor.

5. Where do I receive hospice care?

Most of our patients receive end-of-life care at home or wherever they call home, including nursing homes and assisted living residences. 

6. What if things get to the point where I can’t stay at home to receive care?

The social workers at Treasure Coast Hospice work with you and your family throughout your care to assist you in finding the best arrangements. If your treatment demands it at a point in your care, we welcome you to one of our three hospice houses/Inpatient Units for round-the-clock end-of-life care.

7. How do I pay for hospice care?

Hospice care is covered by most insurance, Medicare and Medicaid. As a not-for-profit hospice, we care for anyone who wants and needs our services, regardless of ability to pay.

8. If my relative wasn’t in hospice care when they died, can I still go to grief counseling?

Yes. Treasure Coast Hospice’s Grief Support services are available to anyone who has experienced a loss, whether the loved one was in our care at the time or not.

9. You talk a lot about advance care planning and I want to do it. Is there a cost? How do I start?

Treasure Coast Hospice invites you to call us to learn more about advance care planning and “Five Wishes®” – an easy-to-use template written in simple language that helps you plan and communicate how you want to be cared for if you become seriously ill. It helps you express your desires in personal, spiritual, medical and legal matters and meets the legal requirements for an advance directive in 42 states, including Florida.

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1. What is in the law that affects charitable giving?

1. The charitable deduction will be retained. Some other itemized deductions will be eliminated or subject to limitations. State and local taxes will be deductible only up to a combined annual limit of $10,000. Deductions for mortgage interest will be limited to $750,000 of debt for those married filing jointly.
2. The law increased the standard deduction to $12,000 for singles, $24,000 for married couples filing jointly, and $18,000 for heads of households. Your deductions (including your charitable deductions) will not reduce your income tax unless their total exceeds your applicable standard deduction amount.
3. There is an increase in the adjusted gross income (AGI) limitation on charitable gifts of cash to public charities from 50% of AGI to 60% of AGI. The AGI limitation on charitable gifts of appreciated property to public charities will remain 30% of AGI. If you itemize, you will continue to be able to carry forward deductions subject to either limitation for up to five years.
4. The gift tax, estate tax, and generation skipping tax will continue and estates will still be entitled to an unlimited estate tax deduction for charitable gifts. However, the exemption amounts for each of these taxes will double to $11.2 million per individual, ($22.4 million for gift and estate tax for married couples).
5. The law repeals the 80% charitable deduction for gifts made in exchange for college athletic event seating rights.

2. How will the tax reform act affect you and your charitable giving?

While there will be an increase in the number of individuals claiming the standard deduction, if you live in a state with high income and property taxes and you have a mortgage, you could find that you still itemize and thus can make use of your charitable deductions.

3. What benefits can I receive without itemizing?

Even if you don’t itemize, here are some strategies to make gifts to charity and still receive tax benefits:

• Make gifts of appreciated property such as publicly-traded securities to charity. The new law will still allow you to make gifts of appreciated assets you have owned for at least one year without triggering capital gain tax. If you itemize your deductions, you will get the double tax benefit of an income tax charitable deduction based on the full value of your appreciated assets in addition to complete capital gain tax avoidance.
• Make gifts to charity using the charitable IRA rollover. If you are over 70 and a half, you can make a direct transfer from your traditional IRA or Roth IRA to charity of up to $100,000. You will avoid all income tax on your withdrawal, even if you don’t itemize after the new law!
• You can make larger gifts to charity. Your total deductions may put you close to the threshold where itemizing your deductions offers greater tax benefits than taking the standard deduction. In this case, you might consider making a larger charitable gift so that you can enjoy the additional tax savings that itemizing would offer.
• Include a gift for charity from your estate. The new tax law retains current law and does not impose limits on estate tax charitable deductions. If you have sufficient assets and may be subject to estate tax, you might consider a gift to charity from your will, trust, or other estate planning documents. Such a gift will reduce your estate tax burden.
• Make a gift to charity from all or a portion of what’s left in your retirement plan. Assets in your IRA, 401(k), or other qualified retirement plan may be subject to income tax when distributed to heirs. Making a charity a beneficiary of a portion or all of your retirement plan will avoid the income tax that might otherwise be due from your heirs. This is an extremely tax efficient way for you to make gifts to charity that costs your heirs less than giving other kinds of assets.

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1. What is Treasured Pets?

Treasured Pets is a service offered by Treasure Coast Hospice to assist hospice patients with the care of their beloved pets. We understand a pet’s contribution to the emotional and spiritual well-being of a patient and his or her family.

Our goal is to help maintain the general health and a balanced lifestyle for the pet at a time when it may be difficult for the family to do so alone. We help to relieve the strain on the patient or family regarding their pet presently, as well as concern for its future.

2. How can I help?

There are countless opportunities to participate in this special program. Your donations help us provide necessary care for the pets of our hospice patients. Donations support food, animal care bills, and other expenses that allow the patient and pet to stay together.

Contact the Treasure Coast Hospice Foundation at 772-403-4500 to make your contribution.

3. Do you have pets available to foster or adopt?

Yes! We typically have pets that are either currently available, whose owners have passed and who need to be rehomed or fostered fairly quickly, or we have situations where the owner is in our care and has let us know that it is their wish for us to find a loving home for their pet upon their passing.

Many times, these are more mature pets, but we make sure that before they are rehomed they are current on all vaccinations and vet visits. We'll even get a grooming if needed! To see which pets are currently available, click here.

Pets Available for Adoption

4. How can I volunteer with Treasured Pets?

The success of this program depends upon a dedicated group of compassionate volunteers who assist in the care of our patients’ pets. Volunteer responsibilities vary by situation but will typically include:

• Active play and dog walking
• Pet food delivery
• Transporting pets to groomers and vets

Treasure Coast Hospice provides our volunteers with the required training for this program.

For volunteer training dates or more information, call 772-403-4500.

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1. What is the importance of Veteran Volunteers?

Veteran Volunteers are essential to the delivery of quality hospice care. Veterans are a part of a distinct culture with their own common language and experience. When Veterans interact, their common language and experience can form a strong and meaningful bond. The camaraderie created between veterans has proven to be supportive for all involved.

Veteran Volunteers help veterans on hospice service in many ways, including:

• Visiting patients to reminisce and share military experiences and other life stories
• Educating and assisting patients in receiving veteran benefits
• Participating in veteran pinning ceremonies and other recognition events

2. What is a Veteran Pinning Ceremony?

A Veteran Pinning Ceremony is an opportunity to publicly acknowledge the military service and sacrifices made by the veteran and his/her family. The ceremony, conducted by a Veteran Volunteer, honors and recognizes a hospice patient’s service to our country and helps them and their loved ones find closure and peace at the end of life.

3. Do you do more for veterans than pinning ceremonies?

Yes! Treasure Coast Hospice is proud to be a Level 5 member of the We Honor Veterans program, part of the National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization in collaboration with the Department of Veterans Affairs. Level 5 is the highest distinction that can be earned in the program, and to achieve Level 5, an organization must meet rigorous standards of veteran outreach, staff education and enhanced services for veterans and their families under hospice care.

This means that each year, in addition to pinning hundreds of veterans in our care and within the community, Treasure Coast Hospice hosts special events and participates in community programs geared to educating and supporting veterans throughout Martin, Saint Lucie and Okeechobee counties. We also have an ongoing Veterans Visiting Veterans program, where we match one of our veteran volunteers to a veteran patient so that they can openly share and relate within the special bond achieved through military service.

To learn more about our efforts, please view our We Honor Veterans Annual Summary Report at the link below. If you are a veteran who would like to join our mission to serve other veterans within our community, please apply to volunteer here, and thank you for your service.

TCH We Honor Veterans Annual Summary Report