FAQs

If interested in paying privately (self-pay) for care at home typically there is no physician’s order needed. However, the nurse’s assessment may be shared with your primary physician as applicable, to better provide care to you under the plan of care set between you and the nurse. If you have Medicaid, then your physician would need to complete the PCS form found at http://nc-pcs.com/ and fax it to the independent assessor who is contracted with DMA listed on the form. Once the independent assessor visits your home to complete the assessment, you will be asked at that time which provider you would like to choose to provide your personal care services. The provider of choice will receive your information as a referral once you have met the established criteria, and contact you to set up their own admission under the independent assessor’s authorization.

To receive home health care services under Medicare, a patient must meet the following criteria:

• homebound
• be under a physician’s care- all home health services must be ordered by a physician
• reasonable and necessary- treatment provided at home must fall within the accepted standards of medical practice and be appropriate for the patient
• skilled services the patient must have a medical need that requires the skill of a licensed nurse, physical therapist or a speech therapist. Once the skilled need is established a secondary discipline such as medical social worker, occupational therapist or home health aide may be involved in providing patient services
• part time and intermittent home visits are made to provide a needed service and not extended hours of care. The patient must also have a medically predictable, recurring need for skilled care. One time visits are not allowable under Medicare guidelines.

Personal care services are:

• delivered by Certified Nursing Assistants
• preventative in nature and are provided over a longer period of time
• paid for by the NC Medicaid program or paid for privately. Medicare does not pay for personal care services
• designed to maintain a medically stable individual.

Home Health services are:

• delivered by Registered Nurses and/or Licensed Therapists
• rehabilitative or restorative in nature and are delivered over a relatively short period of time
• paid for by Medicare and some private insurances. Home health services can also be paid for privately if the patient does not meet the Medicare criteria
• designed to promote recovery following an acute medical crisis.

Personal care services can be paid for privately. Some long-term care insurance policies and a few private insurances have benefits that cover personal care services. However, most personal care services are paid for by Medicaid. Medicare does not pay for personal care services. Home health services are paid for by Medicare, Medicaid, private insurance, and privately.

Due to high nursing home cost and a desire to remain at home, many people are now exploring the value of long-term care insurance. These policies vary from company to company and many policies can be written to meet the prospective clients’ specific desires regarding where and how they would like to receive care in their senior years. lf it is your desire to stay at home, be sure to specifically ask your long-term care insurance agent about personal care and home health.

Consumers today are very savvy and for good reason. When employing a home care agency it is very important to do some research. The National Association for Home Care has a wonderful website with helpful information on how to select the right home care provider. Their site is www.nahc.org. The “Consumers” page under the “General Information” heading will provide you with a wealth of helpful information.

Contact Matt Langley Program Director of CAP Innovations at AssistedCare at 910-763-9933, to assist you with the referral process.