Eligibility for hospice care generally follows the requirements established by the US Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. These guidelines include some specific criteria, though they are not intended to replace the judgement of a medical professional. Perhaps the most well-known of the guidelines is that a patient is eligible for care if the normal course of their illness means that they have less than six months. However, a completely accurate medical assessment is nearly impossible, so physicians have some discretion in making a recommendation for hospice.