The Home Health Guide
What Is Home Health Care?
Home health care is skilled nursing and therapy at home, ordered by your doctor. See what it includes, how it starts and what it is not.
Home health care is skilled medical care, such as nursing and therapy, that a Medicare-certified agency gives you at home under a plan of care ordered by your doctor or another approved practitioner. It usually starts after a hospital stay, a surgery or a change in a long-term condition, and it lasts as long as you need skilled care and still qualify. For people who meet Medicare’s rules, Medicare pays the full cost of covered home health services.
What home health care includes
A home health agency can send several kinds of professionals to your home. Your plan of care decides which ones you get and how often they visit.
- Skilled nursing: wound care, injections, IV or nutrition therapy, checking an unstable condition, and teaching you or your family how to manage medicines and care.
- Physical therapy: regaining strength, balance and the ability to walk safely after an illness, fall or surgery.
- Occupational therapy: relearning everyday tasks such as bathing, dressing and getting in and out of bed.
- Speech-language therapy: help with speaking, understanding or swallowing, often after a stroke.
- Medical social services: help with the emotional and practical side of an illness, including finding community resources.
- Home health aide care: help with bathing and other personal care, but only while you are also receiving skilled nursing or therapy.
Each agency profile in our home health directory lists the services Medicare reports for that agency, so you can check before you call.
How home health care starts
- A practitioner orders it. Your doctor, or a nurse practitioner, clinical nurse specialist or physician assistant, confirms that you need skilled care at home.
- You have a face-to-face visit. Medicare requires an in-person or telehealth visit related to the reason you need home health care, within 90 days before or 30 days after care starts.
- You or your discharge planner choose an agency. You have the right to pick any Medicare-certified agency that serves your area and can meet your needs.
- A nurse or therapist makes the first visit. They assess your health, your home and your goals, and work with your practitioner on a written plan of care.
- Visits follow the plan. The plan sets which services you get and how often. Your practitioner reviews it and recertifies it at least every 60 days while you still need care.
Care ends when you reach your goals, no longer need skilled care, or no longer meet Medicare’s rules. You get written notice before covered services stop.
Where you can receive it
Home health care comes to wherever you live: your own house or apartment, a relative’s home, or an assisted living or board-and-care home. It is not provided while you are a patient in a hospital or a skilled nursing facility.
What home health care is not
Home health care is part-time, skilled and medical. It does not include round-the-clock care, meal delivery, cleaning or shopping, or personal care on its own when that is the only help you need. That kind of everyday help is called home care, and Medicare does not pay for it. Our guide to home health vs. home care explains the difference and the costs.
Home health care is also different from hospice. Home health aims to help you recover or stay stable, while hospice focuses on comfort for people with a terminal illness who are no longer seeking a cure.
Next steps
- Check whether you qualify: who qualifies for home health care.
- See what you will pay: what Medicare covers.
- Compare local agencies: find a Medicare-certified home health agency.
Common questions
How long does home health care last?
There is no fixed limit. Care continues in 60-day periods for as long as you need skilled care and your practitioner recertifies your plan.
Do I have to pay for home health care?
If you have Original Medicare and qualify, you pay nothing for covered home health services. You may pay 20% of the Medicare-approved amount for medical equipment such as a walker, after your Part B deductible.
Can I choose my home health agency?
Yes. Medicare lets you choose any certified agency that serves your area. Hospitals must give you a list of agencies and respect your choice. Medicare Advantage plans may limit you to agencies in their network.
Sources
This guide is general information, not medical advice. See our medical disclaimer.