How to choose a home health agency

Home health means skilled care at home (nursing, therapy) ordered by a doctor, often after a hospital stay. You usually have the right to choose the agency. A few calls can make a big difference.

1. Make a short list

• Ask the hospital discharge planner or doctor which agencies serve your address.
• Search your ZIP code and open each agency's page.
• Confirm the agency is Medicare-certified and takes your insurance.

2. Check the inspection record

• Look first for serious (condition-level) findings and anything about patient rights, abuse or neglect, medications, or missed visits.
• Check whether the same problem shows up in more than one inspection.
• Note how recent the findings are. Open the CMS source report to read the full details.
• No findings is good, but it is not a guarantee: some agencies are inspected by private accreditors whose reports are not public.

3. Questions to ask on the phone

1. Can you start care within 48 hours of discharge, and how often will a nurse or therapist visit?
2. Will the same nurse and therapist usually come each time?
3. Who do we call after hours or on weekends, and how fast do you respond?
4. How do you coordinate with our doctor about changes in condition or medications?
5. Your last inspection cited [finding]. What did you change afterward?
6. Are your nurses and aides employees, and how are they trained and supervised?
7. What will Medicare or our insurance cover, and will we owe anything?
8. How do we raise a concern or file a complaint?

4. After care starts

• Keep a simple log of visits and any missed or late visits.
• Raise concerns with the agency first. You can also contact your state's home health complaint line (the state survey agency; in Texas, the Health and Human Services Commission) or your Medicare plan.
• You can switch agencies if care is not working.

Not medical advice. This guide is general information. Talk with the patient's doctor about care needs.