On April 8, 2014, CMS published a notice announcing that it is establishing a new “system of records” to collect data to support the Hospice Quality Reporting Program. The new “Hospice Item Set” (HIS) is a standardized mechanism for abstracting data from a patient’s medical record to confirm that the appropriate assessments were made and concerns were addressed for the following domains of care: (1) Pain; (2) Respiratory Status; (3) Medications; (4) Patient Preferences; and (5) Beliefs & Values. The notice is effective on May 8, 2014, and comments will be accepted until that date. Beginning July 1, 2014, hospices will be required to submit two HIS records for each patient admitted to their organization: an HIS-Admission record and an HIS-Discharge record.