Kenyon Connects

We frequently get calls about those looking for help starting a home care, home heath, and hospice agency. It’s part of what we do. However, it is important that those looking to jump into the homecare and hospice arena understand the process, the cost, and whether it is a good fiscal move. Here are some things to consider ahead of time to help determine if you are prepped for success.

Have you wanted to start up a new program or diversify services in your agency? Many home health agencies see patients with private payers as well as Medicaid, but have stayed clear of the Medicare world. If that is you, then let’s talk about some things to consider when making your decision to become Medicare certified.

About thirty years ago, most home health agencies were non-profit Medicare agencies. Many had private pay home care as part of the organization's services. Back then, most of the Medicare agencies were VNAs or attached to a hospital system. We had our Medicare caseload and then there was the private pay which also included the DSHS Chore Services personal care program. There were few free standing private pay agencies. Approximately twenty years ago many of the Medicare agencies began to drop their private pay programs. It was about that time that that HCFA, now CMS began to allow for-profit organizations to participate in the Medicare Home Health benefit. The Medicare rules began to be enforced and those agencies which ran the private pay home care with the Medicare began to close the private pay sections because they were losing money. Most of that had to do with running the agencies under the Medicare license thus costing considerably more with less income to balance the P&L.

Starting an agency in home and community based care has a lot of steps and you need to make sure you considering everything before you jump in. It is time consuming and costs money, but utilizing a consultant will help you meet your goals quicker and more accurately as they have decades in the industry as senior level executives.