Hospice care in San Luis Obispo
Hospice care at home in San Luis Obispo — a Santa Maria team, already on this route.
Care that comes to you
San Luis Obispo families often assume hospice must come from a local SLO office. Our nurses already travel the 101 through town several days a week, and the 24/7 nurse line is the same number Santa Maria families call.
We care for SLO patients in private homes from the Laguna Lake neighborhoods to the Irish Hills, and we coordinate with assisted living and skilled nursing communities throughout the city.
Downtown, the south Broad Street corridor, and homes near Cal Poly are all in range. Tell us the address and we will confirm the visit plan on the first call.
About 35 minutes north of Santa Maria on Highway 101.
Questions about care in San Luis Obispo? Call (805) 361-0264. A member of our team answers day and night.
At a glance
- 24/7
- Nurse always on call
- 24–48hr
- Typical admission
- Medicare
- Hospice benefit for eligible patients
Three questions to shape the first call
Almost no family knows what to ask the first time. These are the three things we need to know, and what usually follows from each answer.
- 1
Where does your loved one live?
- A house in San Luis Obispo — downtown, Laguna Lake, the Johnson Avenue side, or near Cal Poly — care comes to the home, and family caregivers are trained and supported.
- An assisted living or senior community in the city — hospice is added on top of the care they already receive.
- A skilled nursing facility — we coordinate directly with facility staff so hospice fits the routine already in place.
- Still in the hospital — care can begin at discharge, or follow them where they are.
- 2
What is hardest this week?
- Pain, breathing, nausea, or hard nights — skilled nursing and pain management.
- Bathing, dressing, and transfers — a home health aide.
- Paperwork, benefits, or a conversation nobody wants to start — social work.
- Grief, fear, or questions of meaning — chaplain and emotional support.
- 3
Has a doctor said the illness is life-limiting?
- Yes — call today, and we will start arranging the certification and the first visit.
- Not yet, but the family is carrying all of the caregiving — call anyway. We will talk it through with you and with the doctor.
- You are still weighing hospice against palliative care — call and ask. Nobody is signed up on a first conversation.
What it costs and how fast it starts
What it costs
For most San Luis Obispo families, hospice is a benefit rather than a bill. Medicare Part A covers nursing visits, home health aide visits, medications for the hospice diagnosis, medical equipment such as a hospital bed, supplies, social work, chaplain support, volunteers, and bereavement care for the family afterward. Medi-Cal coverage is similar, and most private plans include a hospice benefit.
Medicare may still leave a small copayment for outpatient prescriptions and a share of the cost of inpatient respite care, and we verify your coverage and tell you what applies before care begins. Treatment for conditions unrelated to the hospice diagnosis stays with regular Medicare or your other insurance. We never require a financial contribution from your family, and we never turn anyone away for inability to pay. San Luis Obispo is the county seat and the office is not close, so we do a benefits check by phone, or a social worker brings the paperwork to the kitchen table on the first visit.
Full coverage detail lives on the eligibility and coverage page.
How fast care starts
Call at any hour and a real person on our team answers, nights and weekends included. A physician has to certify eligibility before care begins, and we help arrange that. From there, admission is typically organized within 24 to 48 hours of the referral, and we usually deliver medications, a hospital bed, and other supplies within 24 hours of admission.
San Luis Obispo is about 35 minutes north of Santa Maria on Highway 101, and our nurses already travel that route through downtown, Laguna Lake, the Johnson Avenue side, and the Cal Poly area several days a week. Hospice care is intermittent rather than live-in: your nurse sets a visit schedule with your family based on the care plan, and revisits it as needs change. Between visits, our on-call nurse is reachable by phone 24 hours a day, and we can send a nurse to the home for urgent support.
Our certification and quality record is public on Medicare Care Compare.
What San Luis Obispo families receive
The full hospice benefit travels with us: the same team and the same services every family receives, plus medications, equipment, and supplies related to the hospice diagnosis, delivered to the home.
Where we provide care in San Luis Obispo
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Private homes
Most of our San Luis Obispo patients receive care in their own home, supported by family caregivers and our visiting team.
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Assisted living
We partner with residential and assisted living communities, adding hospice support on top of the care they already provide.
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Skilled nursing facilities
Our team coordinates directly with facility staff so hospice care fits into the daily routine already in place.
Wondering if it's time? Read about hospice eligibility or browse our frequently asked questions.
What San Luis Obispo families ask
Is there hospice care in San Luis Obispo?
Yes. A San Luis Obispo family will ask why a Santa Maria hospice would come to the county seat. Because this is already our farthest regular route north — about 35 minutes up Highway 101 — and our nurses already travel through downtown, Laguna Lake, the Johnson Avenue side, and the Cal Poly area several days a week. The 24/7 nurse line is the same number Santa Maria families call. Care happens wherever home is — a private house, an assisted living community, or a skilled nursing facility.
How much will this cost our family?
For most patients covered by Medicare Part A, nothing for the hospice services themselves. Because the office is not close, we do a benefits check by phone, or a social worker brings the paperwork on the first visit, and we explain what is covered before care begins.
How quickly can care start?
Typically 24 to 48 hours from the referral. San Luis Obispo is about 35 minutes north of Santa Maria on Highway 101 — the farthest regular route we run north — and our nurses already travel through downtown, Laguna Lake, and the Cal Poly area. Call any hour and someone answers, and once your loved one is on service a nurse is reachable by phone 24/7.
Do we need a doctor to call first?
No. A family downtown, on the south Broad Street corridor, or near Cal Poly can call us themselves. Anyone can refer. A physician does have to certify eligibility before care begins, and we help arrange that with your loved one's own doctor. Nobody is enrolled on a first conversation.
Can hospice come to assisted living or a nursing home?
Yes. We add hospice support on top of the care an assisted living or skilled nursing community in San Luis Obispo already provides — near Laguna Lake, the Irish Hills, or elsewhere in the city — and we coordinate directly with facility staff so hospice fits the routine already in place.
Is care available in Spanish?
Yes. Say so on your first call and we will match you with a team member who can speak with you in Spanish.
Is hospice only for cancer?
No. We care for people with heart disease, lung disease including COPD, dementia and Alzheimer's, stroke, kidney or liver disease, ALS and other neurologic illness, Parkinson's disease, and general decline with advanced age.
Will a nurse live in the house?
No. Coming up the 101 from Santa Maria does not mean a nurse moves in. Hospice care is intermittent rather than live-in: your nurse sets a visit schedule with your family based on the care plan, and revisits it as needs change. Between visits, our on-call nurse is reachable by phone 24 hours a day and can make an urgent home visit on Johnson Avenue or anywhere else in the city.
If your question is not here, call and we will answer it on the phone.
View all questionsReady to talk about care in San Luis Obispo?
No obligation, no pressure, just answers. Call anytime, day or night, and a real person on our team will pick up.