When it comes time to make decisions about home care for an older loved one, shopping for the services you need can be rather intimidating, and you’ll likely have dozens of questions. Do you even know what home care services you need? Does your loved one need full time care or just a few hours a day? Will Medicare cover the services Mom and Dad need? How can you find trusted home care services that will meet your needs?
At Advanced Home Health Care, providers of senior home care services in Burlington and surrounding communities in the counties of Des Moines, Lee, Henry, and Louisa we want to be your resource for senior care information. There are several models of home care that offer different services and payment options. Below, we’ll define these models in order to help you make an informed care choice for your loved ones.
- Private Duty Home Care is paid for directly by the client. Private duty services are basically any supportive services. They run the gamut from errands to transportation to companionship to personal care to nursing. Certain long-term care insurance policies, workers’ compensation and armed services funding may cover private duty services pending specific qualifications of the agency and policies.
- Medicare Home Health is usually referred to as “home health care” and the term refers to Medicare-certified agencies whose in-home care services are paid for by Medicare. These services are reimbursement-driven, meaning that the patient has to fit into a specific category for which care is reimbursed by Medicare. Home health care agencies provide skilled nursing services in the home for treatment of an illness or injury.
- Hospice Care is specialized care designed to provide comfort and support to patients and their families when an illness no longer responds to treatments. Hospice neither prolongs life nor hastens death. Hospice caregivers can offer specialized medical care, including pain management. Hospice care can be provided in the home or in the hospital, but someone must be with the patient at all times. Most hospice care programs accept patients who have a life expectancy of 6 months or less and who have been referred by a physician. Hospice coverage is offered by most private insurance providers and through Medicare.
- Medicaid Home and Community-based Care is intended to provide services for those who cannot afford to pay for care. Coverage criteria are determined by the state and recipients are not required to be homebound or ill in order to receive services, unlike Medicare-reimbursed home health care.
At Advanced Home Health Care, we understand how overwhelming the search for the right senior care provider can be. We offer both private duty home care and skilled nursing care services as well as therapy, rehabilitation, and social worker services to serve clients wherever they are in their health journey. If you have questions about our trusted home care services or the areas we serve throughout the Southeast Iowa area and need a reliable local resource, contact the senior care experts at Advanced Home Health Care today. We proudly serve families .
