Medicare Requirements for a Patient's Choice in Choosing Home Health

Under Medicare laws, you may be eligible to receive some health care services at home. Many health treatments that used to be available only at a hospital are now available through the Medicare home health benefit. If you opt for the home health benefit, you have some choice in terms of choosing the care you will receive.

Right to Choose

• If your doctor determines that you will need home health care, you will have the right to choose an agency to provide such care, under the Medicare home health requirements for patient choice. Your doctor, hospital discharge planner or other agency should honor your choice.

Limitations

• Even though you have the right to choose, your choice may be limited based on your insurance coverage or the availability of the agency you have picked. Some managed care plans may require you to receive home health care only from agencies they contract with. Also, the home health agency should be Medicare certified and should serve your geographic area.

Factors to Consider

• The home health system has quality measures for providers that give an idea about how well each provider is doing in terms of patients' physical and mental health and improvement seen in the patient. The quality measures take into account a patient's improvement in getting around, how well the agency met patient's requirements for daily living, the outcome of the home health care treatment and how the agency handled patient medical emergencies. Ask your doctor, hospital discharge provider or social worker for input. Talk to friends about their experiences or use a senior community referral service.