A comparison that names no one else
How Beta Hospice compares, on the things you can check
Every Medicare-certified hospice must offer the same benefit by law: the same four levels of care, the same team, the same medicines and equipment, paid the same way. The differences are in reach, responsiveness, language, experience with facilities and transparency. This page gives Beta's answer on each of those, with the public record where you can check it, so you can ask any other hospice the same questions.
Reviewed by Beta Hospice compliance, October 12, 2026
On this page (5 sections)
Why twenty hospices can look the same
A directory lists names, phone numbers and distances. It cannot show what matters, because the law makes the benefit itself identical. Under 42 CFR Part 418, every certified hospice must provide nursing, a doctor, aides, a social worker, a chaplain, medicines, equipment and grief support, and Medicare pays each one the same daily rate for the same level of care.
So the question is which hospice can reach you, answer you at night, speak your language, work inside the place where your relative lives, and show you its records without being asked twice. Those are things you can check.
What to compare, and Beta's answer
| What to compare | Beta's answer | Where to check it |
|---|---|---|
| State license and Medicare certification | California hospice license 550004949. Medicare provider number (CCN) A11527, certified in 2020. | Care Compare (opens in a new tab) and Cal Health Find (opens in a new tab) |
| Office location and service area | One office, in San Bernardino. We serve San Bernardino, Riverside, Los Angeles and Orange counties. Ventura County by individual check. | Service area and the contact page |
| Who answers the phone | A hospice nurse answers the phone 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, and can visit when needed. | Call at night and see who picks up |
| Response to a referral | A response within two hours, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. | How to refer |
| Languages | English, Spanish, Russian, Armenian and other languages through interpreters. The nurse line is answered in Spanish at every hour of the day and night. | Hospice in Spanish and language assistance |
| Care in facilities | We care for people wherever they call home, including nursing facilities, RCFEs (residential care facilities for the elderly) and board-and-care homes, in coordination with facility staff. | Where care happens |
| Levels of care | All four Medicare levels. Continuous home care and general inpatient care only when medically necessary during a symptom crisis. Respite care up to 5 days at a time. | Levels of care |
| Bereavement | Grief support for the family for 13 months after a death. | Bereavement support |
| Accreditation | Accreditation Commission for Health Care (ACHC), accredited as Beta Hospice Care, Inc. Accreditation is voluntary. | ACHC lookup (opens in a new tab) |
| Ownership | For-profit, privately held California corporation. | Care Compare (opens in a new tab) |
| Quality information | See our Medicare quality information on Care Compare (opens in a new tab). Star ratings need enough returned family surveys, and a smaller hospice may show "not available". | Care Compare (opens in a new tab) |
| Transparency | We publish how we write and review every page, and every identifier we hold, with the record that backs it. | How we write and review and licenses and identifiers |
We do not quote our own survey scores or star rating here, and we suggest you do not take any hospice's word for them. Open Care Compare and read the page yourself.
How to run the same check on any hospice
Put each hospice on your list through the same twelve rows. Most of it is reading public records.
- Ask for the legal name, the CCN and the California license number, then match them in Care Compare and Cal Health Find. The lookups are in how to verify a hospice.
- Ask where the office is and whether a nurse, not an answering service, picks up at 2 am. Then call at night and find out.
- Ask how fast they respond to a referral, in hours, and who comes to the first visit.
- Ask which languages the nurses and aides speak, and whether the night line is answered in your language.
- If your relative lives in a facility, ask how the hospice works with that facility's staff.
- Ask what happens in a symptom crisis, where inpatient care is provided and how long grief support continues.
- Use the printable question list in how to choose a hospice for the rest, including costs and complaints.
What a comparison cannot tell you
A table cannot tell you about fit. It cannot tell you how the first visit will feel, whether the nurse explains things in a way your family understands, or whether the aide and your mother get along. Those show up in the first week, not in a record.
It also cannot tell you which nurse you will get. Hospices assign a primary nurse and a team, and most try to keep the same people with you. Ask every hospice how they handle that, and ask us the same.
Choosing hospice is your decision. You can stop hospice at any time and return to regular Medicare coverage. You have the right to choose your hospice. If the first choice is not a good fit, you can change.
Questions families ask when comparing hospices
Is a nonprofit hospice better than a for-profit one?
Tax status does not tell you how good the care is. Both kinds must follow the same federal rules, provide the same services and are paid the same way. There are strong and weak hospices of each kind. Look at the license, the certification, the survey results on Care Compare and the people who answer your call, not the tax status. Beta is for-profit and says so plainly.
Why does a hospice have no star rating?
Care Compare builds the star rating from a survey mailed to families after a death. A hospice needs enough returned surveys over the reporting period before a rating is shown. A smaller or newer hospice often has too few, so Care Compare shows "not available". That is not a bad mark by itself. The other quality measures on the same page are still shown.
Can I switch if I chose wrong?
Yes. You can change hospices once in each benefit period, and you can stop hospice at any time. The new hospice handles the paperwork. See switching hospice providers.
Do all hospices cost the same?
Under Medicare, yes. Medicare covers hospice care related to the terminal illness. Under Medicare, most people pay nothing for hospice care itself. There can be a copay of up to $5 per prescription for symptom medicines and 5% of the Medicare amount for inpatient respite care. Medicare does not pay room and board where you live. See paying for care.
About this page
- Written by
- Beta Hospice care team
- Reviewed by
- Beta Hospice compliance
- Last reviewed
- October 12, 2026
- Next review
- April 12, 2027
How we write and review this site
Sources
- Medicare.gov: Hospice care coverage (opens in a new tab)
- Medicare Care Compare: Find and compare hospices (opens in a new tab)
- 42 CFR Part 418: Hospice care (opens in a new tab)
- CDPH Cal Health Find: licensed facility lookup (opens in a new tab)
These sources support the general information on this page. For one personās care and coverage, talk with the hospice team.
You do not have to decide alone.
Call (844) 646-4434 any time, or leave your number and someone from Beta's hospice team will call you. No decision is needed to call. Most families start with a question.
Only a hospice doctor, together with the personās own doctor, can confirm hospice eligibility. A website cannot.
- A nurse answers 24 hours a day, 7 days a week
- You can stop hospice at any time
- You have the right to choose your hospice