Hospice care at home in the San Fernando Valley

San Fernando Valley neighborhoods and ZIP codes we serve

Most of the San Fernando Valley is part of the city of Los Angeles; San Fernando is its own small city. Medicare's hospice ZIP code data lists these 17 Valley ZIP codes for Beta Hospice, grouped here by part of the Valley.

Burbank and Glendale, at the east end of the Valley, are on the county page. The rest of the city of Los Angeles is on the Los Angeles page.

How far is the San Fernando Valley from our office?

By road, North Hollywood is about 65 miles from our office on North D Street in San Bernardino, and Northridge and Woodland Hills about 79. The road runs west on the 210 across the foothills, then onto the 134 into the Valley. Van Nuys is about 71 miles, Pacoima 72 and Sylmar 74.

Without traffic that is roughly 1 hour 20 minutes to 1 hour 40 minutes. Traffic on the 210 and the 134 can make it much longer.

How to start hospice care in the San Fernando Valley

A family member, a case manager at a Valley hospital or the person who is ill can call (877) 258-7129. The hospice nurse who answers, at any hour, asks a few questions and sets up an evaluation visit; we then ask the doctor for the order. Read how to start hospice.

The Valley is a long drive for us, so before admission we go over your address in detail. We cover the scheduled nurse and hospice aide visits, how long a night or weekend visit could take to reach your part of the Valley, and when the bed, oxygen and comfort medicines would come. If we cannot reach an address reliably, we tell you so first.

For a new referral, our standard is a response within two hours, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. While a nurse is on the way, the plan of care tells you which medicines are already in the house, who to call, and when to call 911. Read about the comfort kit.

Older residents in the San Fernando Valley

The 17 ZIP codes in the table are home to about 822,000 people. In the Census Bureau's American Community Survey for 2020 to 2024, about 123,000 of them were 65 or older, 15.0%. The west Valley is older: about one resident in five was 65 or older in Encino, Porter Ranch and Granada Hills. In the city of San Fernando, 3,213 residents were 65 or older, 13.6%.

Hospice comes the same way to a family house, an apartment, a senior building or a small six-bed board-and-care home. Whatever the building, the person or their representative picks the hospice.

Hospitals and nursing facilities in the Valley

The state license file lists these general acute care hospitals in the Valley: Valley Presbyterian Hospital in Van Nuys; Kaiser Foundation Hospital in Panorama City and in Woodland Hills; Mission Community Hospital in Panorama City; Pacifica Hospital of the Valley in Sun Valley; LAC/Olive View-UCLA Medical Center, the county hospital, in Sylmar; Providence Holy Cross Medical Center in Mission Hills; Northridge Hospital Medical Center; Providence Cedars-Sinai Tarzana Medical Center; UCLA West Valley Medical Center in West Hills; Encino Hospital Medical Center; and Sherman Oaks Hospital. Beta Hospice is not part of any of them.

Some of these systems run their own hospice. Kaiser Foundation Hospitals holds a hospice license in Woodland Hills, and the state file lists a hospice licensed as Providence at Home with Compassus Hospice Care LA County. We found no hospice license under the names or license holders of the other Valley hospitals. Whatever the hospital, the person or their representative chooses the hospice. Read in the hospital now.

The state file lists 30 skilled nursing facilities in the 17 ZIP codes, the most in Sylmar. We care for people in those facilities, in RCFEs (residential care facilities for the elderly) and in board-and-care homes, together with the facility staff. Read where care happens.

Crisis care and inpatient stays

Continuous home care is available in all five counties we serve, the San Fernando Valley included. When it is medically necessary during a short symptom crisis, nursing care stays in the home for extended hours so the person does not have to leave.

When symptoms cannot be managed at home, general inpatient care takes place in a hospital or skilled nursing facility under contract with Beta Hospice. Beta does not run a hospice house or an inpatient unit of its own. The team confirms a contracted facility with an available bed, tells you where it is and arranges the handoff and transport before any transfer. Read the levels of care.

Medi-Cal plans in the Valley

Most people with Medi-Cal in Los Angeles County belong to a managed care plan. The county's Medi-Cal plans are L.A. Care Health Plan and Health Net, plus Kaiser Permanente for people who meet Kaiser's rules for joining.

Both L.A. Care and Health Net also work through partner plans and medical groups, so the name on your card may be different. Medi-Cal covers hospice, and when you are in a managed care plan, hospice is arranged through that plan.

These are the county's plans. Listing them here does not mean Beta Hospice has a contract with each one. Whether we are contracted with your plan is checked for each patient. Call us at (877) 258-7129 with your plan card and we will tell you where things stand before care starts.

If you have Medicare, the rules are the same in every city. 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. Read paying for care and does Medicare cover hospice.

Community resources in the Valley

These are public services, not part of Beta Hospice. They can help with needs hospice does not cover.

• 211 LA. Dial 2-1-1 anywhere in Los Angeles County for referrals to food, housing, transportation and caregiver help, all day, every day, in many languages.
• Area Agencies on Aging. Most of the Valley is inside the city of Los Angeles, which has its own Area Agency on Aging for city residents. The city of San Fernando is served by the county's agency. Both connect older adults and caregivers with meals, caregiver support and Medicare counseling (HICAP). California's statewide aging information line, 1-800-510-2020, routes you to the right one.
• In-Home Supportive Services (IHSS). A county-run Medi-Cal program that can pay for a caregiver's hours at home. IHSS is separate from hospice and the two can be used together.
• Grief support. Beta offers grief support to the family for 13 months after a death, by phone, letter, visit and in groups. For community groups, dial 2-1-1 and ask what meets near you in the Valley, including groups in Spanish.

Hospice in Spanish in Pacoima, San Fernando and Panorama City

Spanish is the language at home for many Valley families: about 45% of residents aged 5 and over across the 17 ZIP codes, in the same Census survey. In Pacoima and Arleta (91331) it is about 78%, in the city of San Fernando about 71%, and in Panorama City (91402) about 63%. Our team includes Spanish speakers, and you can ask for Spanish when you call. You can switch this page to Spanish with the language link at the top, or read about hospice care in Spanish.

San Fernando Valley hospice questions