The Home Health Care Wire
Your source for CareVoyant and industry news. March 29, 2023
Right Home Care Software for Consumer Directed Services
Through Consumer Directed Services programs, patients can hire their caregivers and manage their schedules for services authorized by Medicaid or Medicaid Waiver programs. Even though the patient can employ the caregiver and schedule the services, home care agencies will act as fiscal intermediaries by managing the payroll for caregivers and billing for the services provided.
This unique situation creates unique scheduling challenges for the agencies. Even though the agencies are responsible for billing and paying for the services, they cannot schedule caregivers like regular employees. Since the patients are scheduling the caregivers, agencies will only have exposure to the schedules or control over schedules once the time sheets are received from the caregivers.
Consumer Directed Services are authorized by Medicaid or Medicaid Waiver programs with limits on the number of hours of services provided per day, week, or month. This adds another layer of challenge to home care agencies. They must limit the services provided under authorized hours even though they have little control over the hiring of caregivers and managing their services.
When services go over authorized hours, the agencies face the uncomfortable task of telling the caregivers that they will not be paid for the services provided over approved hours.
Home and Community-Based Services (HCBS) allow Medicaid beneficiaries to receive services in their home or community rather than institutions or other isolated settings. These programs serve a variety of targeted population groups, such as people with intellectual or developmental disabilities, physical disabilities, and/or mental illnesses. Over 3 million individuals receive HCBS through various Medicaid Waiver programs.
Medicaid beneficiaries are increasingly receiving LTSS through HCBS. In fiscal year (F.Y.) 2016, Medicaid programs spent approximately $94 billion on HCBS. The federal government and the states spent $116 billion on Medicaid home and community-based services (HCBS) in F.Y. 2020, serving millions of elderly adults and people with disabilities. That is a significant increase in HCBS spending.
Because states can limit enrollment in HCBS waivers, most states report having HCBS waiver waiting lists totaling over 665,000 people nationally. Proposed additional funding for HCBS will enable states to reduce their HCBS waiver waiting lists and add more people to HCBS. The need for HCBS services will continue to grow in the foreseeable future.
Home Health Care Agencies looking for growth and expansion should consider HCBS services as one of the options.
This blog will discuss some of the essential features required in the software to manage HCBS Home Care Agencies efficiently.
Home and Community-Based Services (HCBS) allow Medicaid beneficiaries to receive services in their home or community rather than institutions or other isolated settings. These programs serve a variety of targeted population groups, such as people with intellectual or developmental disabilities, physical disabilities, or mental illnesses. Over 3.5 million individuals receive HCBS through various Medicaid Waiver programs.
Without other viable public or private options to finance current and future LTSS needs for people of all ages, Medicaid will remain the significant financing and delivery system for Home and Community-Based Services for millions of Americans. Addressing provider shortages and streamlining access to community-based care that supports functional independence and enhances the quality of life will remain key objectives of states' rebalancing efforts as the need for Medicaid HCBS grows.
COVID-19 has accelerated providing more HCBS instead of Nursing Homes and other institutional services. Proposed additional funding for HCBS will enable states to reduce their HCBS waiver waiting lists and add more people to HCBS.
Home Care Agencies looking for growth and expansion should consider HCBS services as one of the options.
Home Healthcare Industry News
President Biden: Home Health Care ‘Extends Lives’ And Is ‘Less Expensive’
Home-based care is arguably getting more attention from the U.S. president now than it ever has before.
So much so, in fact, that home health providers and advocates may start looking at President Biden himself as an ally in their fight against payment rate cuts from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS).
LeadingAge poll shows stagnant workforce issues, foreign workers as potential solution
In a recent poll, 64% of aging services providers stated their workforce situation hasn't improved since June 2022.
The poll, conducted by LeadingAge, a nonprofit association representing aging services providers across the country, shows that providers continue to struggle with hiring and retention, worsening financial burdens, and frustration with policymakers’ lack of action.
ABOUT CAREVOYANT
CareVoyant is a leading provider of cloud-based integrated enterprise-scale home health care software that can support all home-based services under ONE Software, ONE Patient, and ONE Employee, making it a Single System of Record. We support all home based services, including Home Care, Private Duty Nursing, Private Duty Non-Medical, Home and Community Based Services (HCBS), Home Health, Pediatric Home Care, and Outpatient Therapy at Home.
CareVoyant functions – Intake, Authorization Management, Scheduling, Clinical with Mobile options, eMAR/eTAR, Electronic Visit Verification (EVV), Billing/AR, Secure Messaging, Notification, Reporting, and Dashboards – streamline workflow, meet regulatory requirements, improve quality of care, optimize reimbursement, improve operational efficiency and agency bottom line.
For more information, please visit CareVoyant.com or call us at 1-888-463-6797.