patients understand the consequences of going into hospice. when you deny care that is lifesaving, that i mean basically took away life. reporter: hospice care is appropriate in many cases and is being used more and more, but the growth rate of hospice transfers at hca facilities is roughly double the national average. were you aware that the compensation that the head of hca receives, sam hazen, is tied to keeping the death rates low in his hospitals? wow, no. i had no idea. reporter: hca is the only one of the four largest for-profit publicly traded hospital chains that uses mortality rates as a factor in executive compensation. hca s ceo made $35.3 million over two years, more than $300,000 of it because of lower mortality rates. if you could talk to sam hazen, what would