What does hospice provide in the Birmingham area?
Hospice provides comfort-focused medical care, nursing visits, aides, medications and equipment related to a terminal illness, plus emotional and spiritual support and bereavement care, wherever the person lives.
ADPH's directory lists 35 hospice providers with offices in the seven counties, 13 of them in Jefferson County. See the hospice roster.
Can hospice come into Alabama assisted living?
Yes, for current residents with a terminal illness other than dementia, if the facility can meet their needs; an Alabama ALF may not admit a new resident who already needs hospice.
See our hospice vs. palliative care guide.
Who pays for hospice?
Medicare's hospice benefit covers hospice care related to the terminal illness for people with a prognosis of six months or less who choose comfort care; Alabama Medicaid and most private insurance also cover hospice.
Room and board in a facility is not part of the Medicare hospice benefit.
What does hospice do in a nursing home or assisted living?
In a facility, hospice adds its own nurse, aide, social worker and chaplain visits to the facility's care, supplies related medications and equipment, and coordinates the care plan with facility staff and the family.
Room and board is still paid the usual way, privately or by Medicaid in a nursing home.
How quickly can hospice start?
Often within a day or two of a physician's referral and the patient's election, after an evaluation visit confirms eligibility and the plan of care is set.
Families can call a hospice directly to request an evaluation.
Can we choose a different hospice later?
Yes. Under Medicare, a patient may change hospice providers once in each benefit period, and may also revoke hospice to resume curative treatment.
Ask about after-hours response times before choosing.
Does hospice provide round-the-clock care at home?
Not routinely: hospice provides scheduled visits and on-call support around the clock, and continuous care at home only for short periods of crisis, so families or paid caregivers provide most day-to-day care.
Ask about respite: Medicare hospice includes short inpatient respite stays to give family caregivers a break.
Where are hospice providers located across the seven counties?
ADPH's October 30, 2026 export lists 35 hospice licenses in the seven counties; the table shows how they spread by county and city.
| County | Licenses | Licensed beds | Cities |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jefferson | 13 | n/a | Birmingham, Gardendale, Homewood, Hoover, Trussville |
| Shelby | 7 | n/a | Alabaster, Birmingham, Hoover, Oxford, Pelham |
| St. Clair | 5 | n/a | Pell City |
| Walker | 7 | n/a | Jasper, Northport |
| Blount | 1 | n/a | Oneonta |
| Chilton | 2 | n/a | Clanton |
| Bibb | 0 | n/a | None listed |
Browse every one in the sortable roster.
At a glance
| Hospice provides | It does not provide | |
|---|---|---|
| Focus | Comfort, symptom control, family support | Curative treatment for the terminal illness |
| Place | Care at home, in assisted living or a nursing home | Room and board under Medicare |
