Last Acts State Report Card

Means to a Better End: A Report on Dying in America Today

Last Acts' state-by-state analysis, Means to a Better End: A Report on Dying in America Today, paints a statistical portrait of the availability and use of end-of-life care. For each state and the District of Columbia, the report assigns a grade (A-E) to eight measurement criteria which reflect key aspects of end-of-life care.

Original and additional documents and reports may be viewed and downloaded from the Last Acts website. Click here to view.

Below are a number of Acrobat PDF documents relevant to the report. You will need the Adobe Reader to access these documents.

Means to a Better End Report (full report)
Maine's Report Card
US Maps with individual state results
State Advance Directives
% Deaths at Home
Hospice Use (over 65 who used hospice in last year)
Hospice Use (median number of hospice days)
Hospitals reporting pain management programs
Hospitals reporting hospice programs
Hospitals reporting palliative care programs
People over 65 with 7 or more ICU days in final months
Nursing home residents in persistent pain
Strength of state pain policies
% primary care physicians certified in palliative care
% full-time equivalent nurses certified in palliative care
Action Guide: Size the Opportunity!

Maine Hospice Council and Center for End of Life Care

Means to a Better End: A Report on Dying in America Today