Sunset Hospice LLC
A hospice in Tucson, Arizona 85705
17 West Wetmore Road Suite 100, Tucson, Arizona 85705. (520) 207-1611.
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The short answer
Record last released by CMS on Oct 23, 2026.
- 8 deficiencies cited in the last three years
- Not rated family caregiver rating
- 10of 10 CMS’s Hospice Care Index
Each figure’s source sits beside it, in its section below.
What these words mean2
- Inspection (survey)
- A visit by state inspectors, often unannounced, who check a place against the rules it must meet. For nursing homes and other places Medicare pays, CMS calls these visits surveys: a standard survey of a nursing home comes at least every 15 months, and a complaint survey whenever a complaint calls for one. Source: CMS; 42 CFR 488.308.
- Deficiency, citation, violation
- What inspectors write up when a place didn’t meet a rule: the rule, what they saw, and when. CMS calls it a deficiency; states may say citation or violation. It is the inspectors’ finding, not a court’s, and the place is usually asked for a plan to correct it. Source: CMS, statement of deficiencies (Form CMS-2567); each state’s licensing agency.
What did inspectors find?
8 deficiencies cited in the last three years
The middle of the 30 hospices serving ZIP code 85705 had 5.
The last inspection on record was on Jul 10, 2025: a reaccreditation inspection by the Accreditation Commission for Health Care.
CMS, QCOR hospice inspection reports. Released Oct 23, 2026. Updated quarterly.
CMS, Hospice ZIP Data. Released Aug 26, 2026. Updated quarterly.
When those deficiencies happened
8 deficiencies in 1 month of the last 36. Last cited Jul 2025. Most serious: Standard-level. The last 3 years, to Nov 5, 2026.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | Dec | |||||||||||
| 2024 | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
| 2025 | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec |
| 2026 | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov |
Hover or focus a month to read it.
Hearth Record drew this from the dates and levels in the source’s own records.
Each deficiency, as cited
Rule titles as CMS’s inspectors cite them, set in sentence case.
CMS, QCOR hospice inspection reports. Released Oct 23, 2026. Updated quarterly.
Jul 10, 2025: reaccreditation inspection by the Accreditation Commission for Health Care8 deficiencies
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Content of plan of care (42 CFR 418.56(c))
The inspectors’ words, 140 words
“Upon patient record review, 2 of 14 (Patient #1,9) did not have evidence in the patient record that the hospice has developed an individualized written plan of care for each patient. The plan of care must reflect patient/family goals and interventions based on the problems identified in the initial, comprehensive, and updated comprehensive assessments. The plan of care must include all services necessary for the palliation and management of the terminal illness and related conditions. Patient #1: Upon patient record review the initial nursing assessment stated the patient had multiple hospital admissions in past 6 months for elevated blood sugar and UTI. There was no problem/intervention/goals for infection. Patient #9: Upon patient record review there was an initial nursing assessment note on 5/18/25 noting the patient had a foley catheter. There was no plan of care problem/intervention/goals for foley catheter.”
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Content of plan of care (42 CFR 418.56(c)(4))
The inspectors’ words, 95 words
“Upon patient record review, 2 of 14 (Patient #3,9) did not have evidence the plan of care must include all services necessary for the palliation and management of the terminal illness and related conditions, including medications and treatments. Patient #3: Upon patient record review there was a nurse note on 6/2/25 “is now requiring compression and elevation related to edema. There was no order for compression. Patient #9: Upon patient record review there was an initial nursing assessment note on 5/18/25 noting the patient had a foley catheter. There was no order for foley catheter.”
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Review of the plan of care (42 CFR 418.56(d))
The inspectors’ words, 98 words
“Upon patient record review, 2 of 14 (Patient #3,6) did not have evidence that a revised plan of care includes information from the patient’s updated comprehensive assessment and must note the patient’s progress towards outcome/goals from the plan of care. Patient #3: Upon patient record review there was a nurses note on 6/2/25 “is now requiring compression and elevation related to edema. The plan of care was not updated to address edema. Patient #6: Upon patient record review there was an order on 5/11/25 for Cephalexin 50 mg. The plan of care was not updated to address infection.”
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Program data (42 CFR 418.58(b)(3))
“Upon observation, there was no evidence the board of directors/governing body approves the frequency and detail of the data collection. No Governing Body minutes for 2024 mentioned the frequency and detail of data collection.”
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Executive responsibilities (42 CFR 418.58(e)(1))
“Upon observation, there was no evidence of involvement of the governing body and organizational leaders in the Quality Assessment/Performance Improvement (QAPI) program. No Governing Body minutes for 2024 mentioned the QAPI program.”
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Executive responsibilities (42 CFR 418.58(e)(2))
“Upon observation, there was no evidence the hospice’s governing body is responsible for ensuring that the hospice-wide Quality Assessment and Performance Improvement efforts address priorities for improved quality of care and patient safety, and that all improvement actions are evaluated for effectiveness. No Governing Body minutes for 2024 mentioned the QAPI program.”
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Hospice aide assignments and duties (42 CFR 418.76(g)(1))
The inspectors’ words, 181 words
“Upon patient record review, 1 of 14 (Patient #9) did not have evidence in the patient record that hospice aide assignments and duties are: • Assigned to a specific patient by a registered nurse that is a member of the interdisciplinary group • Written patient care instructions for a hospice aide must be prepared by a Registered Nurse who is responsible for the supervision of a hospice aide as specified under paragraph (h) of 418.76 • There is evidence in the patient record that the plan of care; indicate what tasks are to be done by the Aide and the frequency of these tasks. The use of “PRN” or “per patient choice”, for any task, whether personal care or non-personal care tasks, are not acceptable Patient #9: Upon patient record review there was an initial nursing assessment note on 5/18/25 noting the patient had a foley catheter. The aide plan of care did not identify the patient had a foley catheter. Additionally, the nurse noted on 5/20/25 the patient had seizures. Seizure precautions was not on the Aide plan of care”
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Level of activity (42 CFR 418.78(e))
“Upon observation, there was no evidence the annual report documents the use of volunteers providing day to day administrative and/or direct patient care services in an amount that, at a minimum, equals 5 percent of the total patient care hours of all paid hospice employees and contract personnel. The volunteer hours documented for 2024 was 3.3%.”
The one inspection in the last three years
| Date | Visit | What the record says |
|---|---|---|
| Jul 10, 2025 | Reaccreditation inspection by the Accreditation Commission for Health Care | 8 deficiencies cited |
Is it certified?
- Medicare-certified hospice since Jul 29, 2022.
- Ownership: for-profit.
- No For hospices, home health agencies, hospitals and dialysis facilities, CMS writes deficiencies at two levels. Standard is the usual one; condition-level is the more serious, when a problem is serious enough that the provider doesn’t meet a whole condition of taking part in Medicare. Source: CMS, State Operations Manual. deficiency or CMS’s most serious finding: the place’s failure to meet a rule caused, or was likely to cause, serious injury, harm, impairment or death to someone in its care. Source: CMS; 42 CFR 489.3. on record in the last three years.
CMS, Hospice General Information. Released Aug 26, 2026. Updated quarterly.
CMS, QCOR hospice inspection reports. Released Oct 23, 2026. Updated quarterly.
Has anything been proven against it?
- CMS doesn’t publish fines or other penalties for hospices, so none are shown.
- 0 deficiencies cited in the last three years came from inspections that included a complaint investigation.
CMS, QCOR hospice inspection reports. Released Oct 23, 2026. Updated quarterly.
Who does the caring?
- From Medicare claims (Jan 1, 2023 to Dec 31, 2024): 13.5 nurse care minutes per routine home care day, 11.3% of skilled nursing minutes at weekends and a visit near death for 97.8% of patients who died.
- Where its patients were cared for (Jan 1, 2024 to Dec 31, 2024): 35% at home, 46% in assisted living, 18% in a nursing facility, 1% in a skilled nursing facility.
CMS, Hospice Provider Data. Released Aug 26, 2026. Updated quarterly.
| Measure | This provider |
|---|---|
| Nurse care minutes per routine home care day | 13.5 min |
| Skilled nursing minutes at weekends | 11.3% |
| Visits near death | 97.8% of patients who died |
Who owns it?
- 10 owners or officers are people: Alisa Weems (managing employee (on the payroll), 50%); Brandi Duarte (managing employee (on the payroll), 50%); Nicholas R Bastiampillai (owns 5% or more directly, 31.66%); Eitan Morse (owns 5% or more directly, 31.66%); Virag Yogesh Shah (owns 5% or more directly, 31.66%); Brandi Duarte (owns 5% or more directly, 5%); Nicholas R Bastiampillai (corporate officer, 0%); Eitan Morse (corporate officer, 0%); Virag Yogesh Shah (corporate officer, 0%); Bijay Sanjeev (corporate director).
- No private-equity firm among the owners CMS lists.
- No real-estate investment trust among the owners CMS lists.
CMS, Hospice All Owners and Hospice Enrollments. Released Sep 29, 2026. Updated quarterly.
What do families say?
- CMS gives no family caregiver survey rating: “The number of cases is too small to report Star Ratings.”
- In CMS’s survey of family caregivers (Oct 1, 2023 to Sep 30, 2025): 74% rated it 9 or 10 out of 10, and 87% would definitely recommend it.
- CMS’s Hospice Care Index: 10 of 10 (Jan 1, 2023 to Dec 31, 2024).
- 97.5% of patients were assessed on all seven of CMS’s measures at the start of care (Oct 1, 2024 to Sep 30, 2025); 84.4% had visits from a nurse or social worker on at least 2 of their last 3 days (Jan 1, 2023 to Dec 31, 2024).
CMS, CAHPS Hospice Survey and Hospice Provider Data. Released Aug 26, 2026. Updated quarterly.
| Measure | Rating |
|---|---|
| Family caregiver survey ratingCMS star rating from its survey of patients’ family caregivers, 1 to 5 | Not rated |
| Hospice Care IndexCMS’s Hospice Care Index, 0 to 10 (higher is better): a point for each of ten measures from Medicare claims on which the hospice meets CMS’s threshold | 10 of 10 |
How does it compare nearby?
- Of the 30 hospices CMS’s data show serving patients in ZIP code 85705, where this hospice’s office is, the middle number of deficiencies cited in the last three years was 5; this one had 8.
CMS, Hospice ZIP Data. Released Aug 26, 2026. Updated quarterly.
CMS, QCOR hospice inspection reports. Released Oct 23, 2026. Updated quarterly.
| Place | Deficiencies, 3 years |
|---|---|
| Sunset Hospice LLC This hospice | 8 |
| Hospice in the Desert LLC | 6 |
| Oshyn Hospice and Palliative Care | 2 |
| Traditions Health | Not given |
| Copper State Hospice Inc. | 5 |
| Bayada Hospice | Not given |
| Amedisys Hospice | 6 |
| T M C Hospice Aka Peppi’s House | 20 |
| Casa De La Luz Hospice | 5 |
| Arista Hospice | Not given |
| Aria Hospice Comfort Care | 4 |
| Bristol Hospice - Tucson | 2 |
What the record doesn’t say
- CMS doesn’t publish fines or other penalties for hospices, so none are shown.
- Only complaints that led to a citation appear; complaints that didn’t aren’t published.
- CMS ended its Special Focus Program for hospices with serious problems on Feb 14, 2025, so no hospice is marked as one.
- Hospice quality measures have a gap from October 2025: CMS replaced its patient assessment then, and public results from the new one (HOPE) are expected around November 2027.
Sources
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Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Hospice General Information (yc9t-dgbk).
Released Aug 26, 2026 and checked Nov 5, 2026. Updated quarterly. Public domain (U.S. Government work).
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Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Hospice Provider Data (252m-zfp9).
Released Aug 26, 2026 and checked Nov 5, 2026. Updated quarterly. Public domain (U.S. Government work).
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Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, CAHPS Hospice Survey (gxki-hrr8).
Released Aug 26, 2026 and checked Nov 5, 2026. Updated quarterly. Public domain (U.S. Government work).
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Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, QCOR hospice inspection reports (Hospice Survey Reports - Oct 2021 through Sep 2026.xlsx).
Released Oct 23, 2026 and checked Oct 27, 2026. Updated quarterly. Public domain (U.S. Government work).
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Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Hospice All Owners (e983965e-1603-4cb8-82b5-c40090e380d1).
Released Sep 29, 2026 and checked Nov 5, 2026. Updated quarterly. Public domain (U.S. Government work).
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Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Hospice Enrollments (25704213-e833-4b8b-9dbc-58dd17149209).
Released Sep 29, 2026 and checked Nov 5, 2026. Updated quarterly. Public domain (U.S. Government work).
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Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services, Hospice ZIP Data (95rg-2usp).
Released Aug 26, 2026 and checked Nov 5, 2026. Updated quarterly. Public domain (U.S. Government work).
If you believe something here is wrong, a correction starts with the agency whose record this copies: CMS. CMS’s own record is on Care Compare. If Hearth Record copied something wrongly, it will fix it and log the correction publicly, with its date: how corrections work.
This copy of the record was made on Nov 5, 2026.
From the hospice
The public record above comes first. Anything the hospice adds will appear here, below it, and say who wrote it.
Replies
None. Replies aren’t open yet. When they open, the hospice will be able to answer any finding for free, and the reply will show beside that finding, unedited and dated.
Paid listing
None. Paid listings aren’t open yet. When they open, anything paid for will say “Paid by the hospice”, and paying will never change a finding, a rating or the order of results.