health

A WORD OF CAUTION . . .

Although most states require that home health care agencies perform criminal background checks on their workers and carefully screen job applicants for these positions, the actual regulations will vary depending on where you live. Therefore, before contacting a home health care agency, you may want to call your local area agency on aging or department of public health to learn what laws apply in your state.

HOW CAN I PAY FOR HOME HEALTH CARE?

The cost of home health care varies across states and within states. In addition, costs will fluctuate depending on the type of health care professional required. Home care services can be paid for directly by the patient and his or her family members, or through a variety of public and private sources. Sources for home health care funding include Medicare, Medicaid, the Older Americans Act, the Veterans' Administration, and private insurance.

Medicare is the largest single payer of home care services. The Medicare program will pay for home health care if all of the following conditions are met:

1. The patient must be homebound and under a doctor's care;
2. The patient must need skilled nursing care, or occupational, physical, or speech therapy, on at least an intermittent basis (that is, regularly but not continuously)
3. The services provided must be under a doctor's supervision and performed as part of a home health care plan written specifically for that patient
4. The patient must be eligible for the Medicare program and the services ordered must be "medically reasonable and necessary"
5. The home health care agency providing the services must be certified by the Medicare program.

To get help with your Medicare questions, call 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227, TTY/TDD: 1-877-486-2048 for the speech and hearing impaired) or look on the Internet at 

WHERE CAN I LEARN MORE ABOUT HOME HEALTH CARE?

There are several national organizations that can provide additional consumer information about home health care services. These include the following:

• The National Association for Home Care, which can be reached at 202-547-7424 or by visiting its website at www.nahc.org. The postal address is: 228 7th St., SE; Washington, DC 20003.
• The Visiting Nurse Associations of America, which can be reached at 617-737-3200 or by visiting its website at The postal addresses are: 99 Summer St., Suite 1700; Boston, MA 02110.

To find out more about home health care programs where you live, you will want to contact your local aging information and assistance provider or area agency on aging (AAA). The Eldercare Locator, a public service of the Administration on Aging (at 1-800-677-1116 or can help connect you to these agencies.

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