Legal Concerns with Providing Hospice and Palliative Care

Most veterinary hospice services are provided in the pet owner's home. Recognized standards of care have not yet been established in this emerging field. This article explores the legal implications surrounding the provision of veterinary hospice care in the United States; and provides veterinarians with the legal information necessary to determine whether and how to prepare for offering palliative and hospice care services. The legal issues that may arise in the context of veterinary hospice are largely duplicative of those that arise in the course of other types of small animal veterinary practice.