CareFirst

What CareFirst does

CareFirstNY, Inc. is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit hospice and bereavement support organization founded in 1981 (originally as Southern Tier Hospice Corporation) and headquartered at 3805 Meads Creek Road in Painted Post, New York. It operates as the sole Medicare/Medicaid-certified hospice provider across Chemung, Schuyler, and Steuben counties in New York's Southern Tier, delivering three core service lines: Hospice Care (end-of-life clinical care including pain and symptom management, interdisciplinary home visits, 24/7/365 on-call support, and up to 13 months of bereavement follow-up); Grief Support (counseling, workshops, support groups, and children's programming such as Good Grief Week); and Mental Health Counseling (specialized therapy for loss, anticipatory grief, caregiver fatigue, and acceptance of terminal diagnosis, delivered in partnership with Family Services of Chemung County). A fourth service, Palliative Care, is currently suspended due to lack of program funding, with stated intent to restore it.

Under the hood, CareFirst runs standard healthcare operational systems rather than a proprietary technology platform; its distribution is regional and relationship-driven, relying on community referrals (open to family, friends, caregivers, and providers), provider partnerships, and education-led community events rather than digital funnels. The business model is a hybrid of fee-for-service reimbursement — hospice services billed predominantly through Medicare Part A, Medicaid, and private insurance, with a sliding-fee scale ensuring no patient is turned away — supplemented by donations, grants, and fundraising events (e.g., Brunch in Bloom, Butterfly Blessings, Love Lights Up the Night). Leadership transitioned in 2025 when Phoebe Reynolds, who had served as Interim CEO since February 2025 following the unexpected passing of CEO Tali Sutton, was named permanent CEO; the board is chaired by Craig T. Casper. The organization is governed by a volunteer board of directors and supported by 101-250 employees and a network of trained volunteers.

CareFirst has been a three-time recipient of the Hospice CAHPS Honors Award (2022, 2023, 2024), placing it among top national performers on caregiver-reported measures of communication, support, respect, and overall care experience. The organization is governed as an independent nonprofit without a parent company, external investors, M&A history, or disclosed subsidiaries, and operates within a tightly defined tri-county geography in rural upstate New York.

Name

CareFirst

Legal name

CareFirstNY, Inc.

Website

https://carefirstny.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1981

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

101–250 employees

Short description

CareFirstNY is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit operating the sole Medicare-certified hospice service across Chemung, Schuyler, and Steuben counties in New York, delivering hospice care, grief support, and mental health counseling to terminally ill patients, bereaved families, and community members.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Hospice and End-of-Life Care Services

NAICS

Home Health Care Services (62161), Outpatient Mental Health and Substance Abuse Centers (621420), Services for the Elderly and Persons with Disabilities (624120)

SIC

Services-Home Health Care Services (8082), Services-Health Services (8000), Services-Nursing & Personal Care Facilities (8050)

akta.pro primary industry

Home Hospice Agencies (HLAFAEAC)

akta.pro secondary industries

Palliative Care, Hospice & Serious Illness Support (BPAGACAK), Bereavement & Grief Support Services (Hospice-Affiliated/Independent) (HLADAHAL), Hospice Care in Nursing Facilities (SNF/NH Hospice) (HLADAHAD), Hospice Care in Assisted Living / Residential Care Facilities (HLADAHAE)

Keywords

• Hospice care services
• Grief support programs
• Mental health counseling
• End-of-life care
• Palliative care nonprofit

Headquarters

HQ city

Painted Post

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Others

Revenue model

1. Hospice Care Reimbursement: As a Medicare/Medicaid-certified hospice provider, CareFirstNY generates revenue through reimbursement from federal and state healthcare programs. Medicare Part A covers hospice care for eligible beneficiaries, including skilled nursing, pain management, social work, spiritual care, and grief support services.
2. Private Insurance Reimbursement: Hospice services are covered by most private insurance plans, with CareFirstNY receiving reimbursement for care provided to privately insured patients.
3. Donations and Fundraising: CareFirstNY relies on community donations and fundraising events to support programs, innovative initiatives, and ensure no one is turned away due to inability to pay. Events include Brunch in Bloom (raised nearly $22,000 in 2026), Butterfly Blessings, and Love Lights Up the Night.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

CareFirstNY provides hospice care for individuals no longer seeking curative treatment, delivering expert comfort care, pain and symptom management, emotional and spiritual support, plus bereavement services for families for up to 13 months after loss. The organization also offers specialized grief support through counseling, education, workshops, support groups, and memorial events for those coping with anticipatory grief or loss, including dedicated programs for children and teens. Mental health counseling services are provided for children (ages 5+), adults, and families dealing with loss, anticipatory grief, caregiver fatigue, and acceptance of terminal diagnosis, in partnership with Family Services of Chemung County. Palliative Care services are currently suspended due to lack of funding.

Product overview

CareFirstNY is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit hospice organization offering three core services: Hospice Care (compassionate end-of-life care with pain management, emotional/spiritual support, and volunteer assistance), Grief Support (educational workshops, support groups, and memorial events for all ages), and Mental Health Counseling (trauma-informed therapeutic services for loss and caregiver fatigue). The organization serves Chemung, Schuyler, and Steuben counties in New York as the sole hospice provider in the region. Palliative Care services are currently suspended due to lack of funding.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Hospice Care End-of-life care for individuals no longer seeking curative treatment, providing expert comfort care, pain and symptom management, emotional and spiritual support, and bereavement services for families up to 13 months after loss. Delivered in patient homes, nursing facilities, assisted living settings, or hospice residences by an interdisciplinary team with 24/7 on-call support. Covered by Medicare Part A, Medicaid, and most private insurance plans.
• Grief Support Specialized grief support services including counseling, education, workshops, support groups, and memorial events for those coping with anticipatory grief or loss in the community. Includes dedicated programs for children, adolescents, and adults, such as Good Grief Week and remembrance events. Open to any community member regardless of whether their loved one was a CareFirstNY patient.
• Mental Health Counseling Therapeutic services for children (ages 5+), adults, and families dealing with loss, anticipatory grief, advanced illness management, acceptance of a terminal diagnosis, and caregiver fatigue. Provided in partnership with Family Services of Chemung County; accessed via an online request form; sliding fee scale and insurance coverage available.

Quantifiable outcome

• Top performers nationally on key measures of communication, support, respect, and overall care experience (CAHPS Hospice survey)
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered secondary and core.

• Corning Area Chamber of CommercesecondaryStrategic or Co-development Partner · 10 March 2026Co-hosted 'The End I Want' Educational Seminar, a community program designed to help individuals and families navigate end-of-life planning and care decisions.
• Alzheimer's AssociationsecondaryStrategic or Co-development Partner · 10 March 2026Co-hosted 'The End I Want' Educational Seminar with CareFirstNY and Corning Area Chamber of Commerce, a community program designed to help individuals and families navigate end-of-life planning and care decisions related to Alzheimer's and dementia.
• National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) Steuben County NYsecondaryStrategic or Co-development Partner · 9 February 2026Partnership for launching a new Survivors of Suicide Loss Support Group, providing specialized support for individuals who have lost loved ones to suicide.
• American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP)secondaryStrategic or Co-development Partner · 9 February 2026Partnership for launching a new Survivors of Suicide Loss Support Group, providing specialized support for individuals who have lost loved ones to suicide.
• Smile Through the StormssecondaryStrategic or Co-development Partner · 9 February 2026Partnership for launching a new Survivors of Suicide Loss Support Group, providing specialized support for individuals who have lost loved ones to suicide.
• Southeast Steuben County Library and Watkins Glen Public LibrarysecondaryStrategic or Co-development Partner · 11 August 2025Partnership for Good Grief Week 2025 (August 11-15), hosting free community events that reached more than 100 children with healing grief support programs.
• Junior League of Greater Elmira-CorningsecondaryGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 May 2025Generously sponsored a third $1,000 nursing scholarship in memory of CareFirstNY's late CEO Tali Sutton.
• WENYsecondaryGTM or Marketing Partner · 27 February 2025Partnership with WENY for The Compassion in Care Nursing Scholarship, presented jointly by CareFirstNY and WENY to support local nursing students.
• Family Services of Chemung CountycoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerMission-driven collaborative partnership between CareFirstNY and Family Services of Chemung County to enhance mental health services in the Southern Tier. This partnership provides specialized mental health counseling services for children, adults, and families dealing with loss, anticipatory grief, caregiver fatigue, and other emotional needs.
• Hospice and Palliative Care Association of New York State (HPCANYS)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerCareFirstNY is a proud member of HPCANYS, a statewide organization dedicated to advancing quality hospice and palliative care through advocacy, education, and leadership. CEO Phoebe Reynolds serves on the Board of Trustees for HPCANYS.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• VITAS Healthcare: Largest US hospice provider (subsidiary of Chemed Corp.), operating across 15+ states with a broad hospice and palliative care portfolio. Represents the national-scale incumbent model that CareFirstNY competes against as a regional nonprofit.
• Compassus: National hospice, palliative, and home health provider with both nonprofit and for-profit operations across 30+ states. Offers comparable interdisciplinary hospice model with grief/bereavement programming.
• Encompass Health: Large publicly traded post-acute care operator with hospice and home health segments. Comparable as a scaled provider of Medicare-reimbursed end-of-life and home-based services.
• Amedisys: Large publicly traded home health and hospice operator with hundreds of hospice locations nationwide. Comparable as a scaled hospice services provider with similar Medicare-reimbursement economics.
• Gentiva: National hospice and palliative care provider spun out from Kindred at Home, operating across the US. Directly comparable hospice service model under Medicare/Medicaid reimbursement framework.

Direct peers

• Capital Caring Health: Mid-Atlantic nonprofit hospice, palliative, and grief support provider with a comparable mission-driven integrated-service model. Closest nonprofit peer in terms of hospice + grief + counseling bundling.
• Hospice & Palliative Care Association of New York State (HPCANYS) member agencies: Network of NY State nonprofit hospice providers that CareFirstNY belongs to. Member agencies like Hospice of Central New York and Hospice of the Finger Lakes are direct regional peers offering the same hospice, grief, and palliative services under the same Medicare/Medicaid framework.
• MJHS Hospice and Palliative Care: New York-based nonprofit hospice and palliative care provider offering hospice, grief support, and home care services. Closest geographic and mission-aligned comparable to CareFirstNY given shared nonprofit hospice model, NY footprint, and integrated grief/mental health programming.

Others

• National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization (NHPCO) member agencies: Industry trade association for US hospice providers. Member nonprofit hospices across the country share CareFirstNY's care model and CAHPS-recognized quality standards.
• Family Services of Chemung County: CareFirstNY's strategic partner delivering mental health counseling under their co-development agreement. Adjacent as a community-based counseling provider that complements CareFirstNY's grief support rather than directly competing.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/CareFirstNY
• Facebookfacebook.com/CareFirstNY

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles12 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about CareFirst