Hospice care in the High Desert: Victorville, Hesperia, Apple Valley

Communities we serve in the High Desert

The Victor Valley is the populated part of the High Desert, along the 15 north of the Cajon Pass. These are the communities families ask about.

Mountain and desert addresses get an individual access check that covers road closures, travel time and an alternate response plan when weather restricts access.

How far is our office from the High Desert?

Our one office is in the city of San Bernardino. Hesperia is about 35 miles away and Apple Valley about 45, over the Cajon Pass on the 15. It is a fair question to ask any hospice: where do your nurses start from, and how do you cover nights and weekends up here? Our answer: referrals get a response within two hours, 24 hours a day, and in-person visits are arranged from the patient's location and clinical need. Before admission we tell you how often routine visits are planned for your address and how an after-hours visit would be reached.

When the Cajon Pass closes

The Cajon Pass can close in snow or high wind, usually for hours. The nurse line still answers 24 hours a day, and the plan of care names what to do while a visit is delayed: which medicines are already in the home, who to call, and when 911 is the right call. If a pass closure is likely, the nurse on duty talks with the family ahead of it. We say this because families in the High Desert ask, and because a hospice that does not plan for the pass has not planned for you.

Hospitals and care facilities nearby

Victor Valley Global Medical Center and Desert Valley Hospital in Victorville, and Providence St. Mary Medical Center in Apple Valley, are the hospitals most High Desert families know. Many families first hear the word hospice from a doctor or case manager at one of them.

Hospice care continues at home after a hospital discharge. When a hospital team raises hospice, we work with the discharge planners so that the first nurse visit, the hospital bed and the medicines are arranged around the day the person goes home. Read where care happens.

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. Hesperia and Apple Valley have many small six-bed board-and-care homes in ordinary neighborhoods, and a hospice nurse visits a person there the same way the nurse visits a private house.

Medi-Cal plans in the High Desert

Most people with Medi-Cal in San Bernardino County belong to a managed care plan. The county's Medi-Cal plans are Inland Empire Health Plan (IEHP) and Molina Healthcare, plus Kaiser Permanente for people who meet Kaiser's rules for joining. 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

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

• 211 San Bernardino County. Dial 2-1-1 from any phone in the county for referrals to food, housing, transportation, caregiver and utility help. Open all day, every day.
• Senior Information and Assistance, 1-800-510-2020. The line for the county's Department of Aging and Adult Services, which is the Area Agency on Aging. It connects older adults and caregivers with meals, caregiver support and Medicare counseling (HICAP).
• City senior centers. Victorville, Hesperia and Apple Valley each run a senior center with meals, classes and information and referral; ask the county line above for the one nearest you.

Spanish-speaking families

Many families in the High Desert speak Spanish at home. Our team includes Spanish speakers, and you can ask for Spanish when you call. Read about hospice care in Spanish, or switch this page to Spanish using the language link at the top.

High Desert hospice questions