AUGUSTA — Terminally ill patients and their families should have access to more hospice services in Maine, according to a report given Wednesday to the Department of Human Services.

The report presented to DHS Commissioner Rollin Ives by the Maine Hospice Council says the AIDS epidemic underscores the need for more hospice money.

Reimbursement for services, particularly to family members who seek counseling to cope with the loss of a loved one, was one of several points highlighted in the study.

Hospice care involves a philosophy and a plan of care that provides medical, emotional and spiritual support to terminally ill patients and their families through community-based programs, in-patient facilities and home-care service.

The report also suggests:

Development of the state Medicaid rules for hospice care to include nursing home reimbursement guidelines;

That the state’s nursing homes be encouraged to use hospice care;

Adopt as policy a system in Maine that allows for development of both small grassroots hospices and larger, full-service hospices;

The council’s report will be used by a task force that Ives will form from representatives from his department, the nursing home industry, the Maine Hospital Association and the AIDS Advisory Committee. The group will present a final plan for future hospice care to Ives next spring before taking its suggestions to the Legislature.

“The demand for hospice care has increased. It is different from what we consider mainstream care,” said Gerald Dube, executive director of the hospice council.