Mountain Valley Hospice & Palliative Care
A hospice in Galax, Virginia 24333
7599 Carrollton Pike # C, Galax, Virginia 24333. (276) 728-1030.
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The short answer
Record last released by CMS on Oct 23, 2026.
- 2 deficiencies cited in the last three years
- 4of 5 family caregiver rating
- 9of 10 CMS’s Hospice Care Index
Each figure’s source sits beside it, in its section below.
What these words mean3
- Star ratings
- CMS rates some kinds of place from 1 to 5 stars, more stars meaning better on CMS’s own measures for that kind: for a nursing home, its health inspections, staffing and quality measures. A rating is CMS’s summary of those measures; it doesn’t promise good care. Source: CMS, Care Compare and the Five-Star Quality Rating System.
- 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?
2 deficiencies cited in the last three years
The middle of the 6 hospices serving ZIP code 24333 had 1.
The last inspection on record was on May 30, 2025: an initial inspection by the Community Health Accreditation Partner.
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
2 deficiencies in 1 month of the last 36. Last cited May 2025. Most serious: Standard-level. The last 3 years, to Oct 27, 2026.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | Nov | 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 |
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.
May 30, 2025: initial inspection by the Community Health Accreditation Partner2 deficiencies
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Content of plan of care (42 CFR 418.56(c))
The inspectors’ words, 242 words
“It is required that each patient’s individualized written plan of care: reflects patient and family goals and identifies planned interventions based on problems identified in the initial and updated comprehensive assessments. This standard was not met as evidenced by clinical record review and interview. In 1 of 14 (7%) active clinical records reviewed, the agency did not ensure the written plan of care reflected patient and family goals, and planned interventions based on problems identified in the comprehensive assessment. CLINICAL RECORD 7: The patient elected the hospice benefit on 03/21/2025 with a diagnosis of Parkinson’s disease. The Registered Nurse (RN) documented on the initial assessment dated 03/21/2023, “patient needs medications to help manage symptoms of constipation, agitation, and nausea. Will order at today’s visit.” The RN also documented that the patient had dysphagia [difficulty swallowing], chokes easily, and was on aspiration precautions and that Ativan [prescribed for treatment of anxiety and agitation] and Zofran [prescribed for treatment of nausea] were ordered for the patient. The RN documented on the comprehensive assessment dated 03/25/2025 that the patient had agitation and dysphagia. The plan of care dated 03/21/2025 did not include planned interventions and goals related to the patient’s anxiety and dysphagia identified in the initial and comprehensive assessments. During joint review of the clinical record and interview on 05/29/2025, the Clinical Director agreed the plan of care should have included goals and interventions for the patient’s anxiety and dysphagia identified in the assessments.”
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Nursing services (42 CFR 418.64(b)(1))
The inspectors’ words, 449 words
“It is required that nursing care and services are provided by or under the supervision of a registered nurse and per the patient plan of care. Nursing services ensure that the nursing needs of the patient are met as identified in the patient’s initial assessment, comprehensive assessment, and any updated assessments. This standard was not met as evidenced by clinical record review and interview. In 1 of 14 (7%) active clinical records reviewed, the agency did not ensure the nursing needs of the patient were met as identified in the patient’s updated assessments. CLINICAL RECORD 9: The patient elected the hospice benefit on 04/28/2025 with a diagnosis of neurocognitive disorder with Lewy Bodies. The patient resided at a skilled nursing facility (SNF). Review of the clinical record revealed the Registered Nurse (RN) documented on the nursing visit note dated 05/20/2024 the patient was “uncommunicative, confused, lethargic. Patient sleeping with mouth open, snoring very loudly. The nurse tried to wake [the patient], but [patient] didn’t respond. O2 sat [oxygen saturation] 80% on room air, RR [respiratory rate] 26 labored, NP [nurse practitioner] contacted and gave orders for Oxygen, Morphine, Ativan, and Atropine drops.” The medications were added to the hospice medication profile on 05/20/2025. There was no documentation in the clinical record that the RN followed up with the SNF to ensure that the medications had arrived and if there were any changes or improvements in the patient’s condition. On 05/25/2025, the hospice weekend triage company took a call from the SNF and documented “[Facility] RN called to notify that she gave a first dose of morphine today at 0539. O2 was 84%. Patient nodded ‘yes’ that he/she was experiencing pain, and he/she was fidgeting. [Facility RN] also gave atropine for secretions. Morphine did help with pain, and O2 up to 93%. The family has been notified.” There was no documentation to show that the contracted triage agency had relayed the message to the hospice on-call RN and there was no documentation that the hospice followed-up with the SNF or made a visit to the patient. The RN next visited the patient on 05/27/2025, 7 days after initial comfort medications were ordered for the patient due to the patient’s symptoms of distress. The RN documented on the nursing visit note dated 05/27/2025, the patient was “minimally responsive, morphine given to patient at 0530 this morning. Spoke with the patient’s spouse and made aware.” During an interview with the Chief Clinical Officer and the Clinical Manager on 05/29/2025, the agency’s best practices and nursing expectations were discussed. They confirmed that the RN did not follow up on the patient’s symptoms and status appropriately according to the agency’s expectations and best practices.”
The one inspection in the last three years
| Date | Visit | What the record says |
|---|---|---|
| May 30, 2025 | Initial inspection by the Community Health Accreditation Partner | 2 deficiencies cited |
Is it certified?
- Medicare-certified hospice since Dec 15, 2005.
- Ownership: non-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): 14.2 nurse care minutes per routine home care day, 15.6% of skilled nursing minutes at weekends and a visit near death for 95.1% of patients who died.
- Where its patients were cared for (Jan 1, 2024 to Dec 31, 2024): 70% at home, 7% in assisted living, 20% in a nursing facility, 1% in a skilled nursing facility, 2% in an inpatient hospice.
CMS, Hospice Provider Data. Released Aug 26, 2026. Updated quarterly.
| Measure | This provider |
|---|---|
| Nurse care minutes per routine home care day | 14.2 min |
| Skilled nursing minutes at weekends | 15.6% |
| Visits near death | 95.1% of patients who died |
Who owns it?
- Northern Hospital of Surry County owns 50% directly since Oct 1, 2005; Hugh Chatham Memorial Hospital, Inc. owns 50% directly since Oct 1, 2005.
- 6 owners or officers are people: Barry S Dowell (corporate officer); Barry S Dowell (managing employee (on the payroll)); Tracey Smith Dobson (corporate officer); Tracey Smith Dobson (corporate director); Tracey Smith Dobson (managing employee (on the payroll)); Tara Dowell (managing employee (on the payroll)).
- 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.
| Organisation | Role | Share | Since |
|---|---|---|---|
| Northern Hospital of Surry County | Owns 5% or more directly | 50% | Oct 1, 2005 |
| Hugh Chatham Memorial Hospital, Inc. | Owns 5% or more directly | 50% | Oct 1, 2005 |
What do families say?
- Family caregivers rate it 4 of 5 in CMS’s survey (Oct 1, 2023 to Sep 30, 2025): 88% rated it 9 or 10 out of 10, and 88% would definitely recommend it.
- CMS’s Hospice Care Index: 9 of 10 (Jan 1, 2023 to Dec 31, 2024).
- 99.01% of patients were assessed on all seven of CMS’s measures at the start of care (Oct 1, 2024 to Sep 30, 2025); 62.5% 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 | 4 of 5 |
| 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 | 9 of 10 |
How does it compare nearby?
- Of the 6 hospices CMS’s data show serving patients in ZIP code 24333, where this hospice’s office is, the middle number of deficiencies cited in the last three years was 1; this one had 2.
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 |
|---|---|
| Mountain Valley Hospice & Palliative Care This hospice | 2 |
| Medi Home Health and Hospice | 0 |
| Wythe Hospice of Swva | 0 |
| Gentiva II | 11 |
| Medi Home Health and Hospice - Pulaski | 0 |
| Acg Hospice | 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 Oct 27, 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 Oct 27, 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 Oct 27, 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 Oct 27, 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 Oct 27, 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 Oct 27, 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 Oct 27, 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.