Welcome to "Ask Debbie." We know that many of you have questions and/or concerns regarding home health care coverage and services. Listed below are a few of the most frequently asked questions from people just like you. Each question has been answered by Debbie. She is a highly qualified registered nurse and the President of Home Health Care Plus, Inc. and Home Health Plus Services, Inc..

Debbie Davison
RN, MS

Question:
My 88 year old father is in a nursing home after a stroke. He wants to go back to his home but needs help. What do we need to do to plan for his return home?

Answer:
Talk to the Social Worker/Discharge Planner at the Nursing Home (NH) and develop a discharge plan and time frame. Almost anyone discharged from a Nursing Home qualifies for Home Care. A Nurse, Home Health Aide for bathing assistance, and Physical or Occupational Therapy can provide care upon return home. Equipment may need to be ordered such as a hospital bed, wheelchair or walker, bedside commode, or lift chair. The Discharge Planner and therapist in the NH can assist in identifying needed items, and any home delivery. Additional private duty homemaker/companion/CNA's are available also (4-24 hours per day), but these services are not covered by Medicare.

Question:
I have a neighbor who has been very ill recently. I was asked to arrange home care for him. How do I go about this?

Answer:
Call Home Health Care Plus, Inc. with your neighbor's name, address and telephone number. Explain what problems your neighbor is having, and the agency will call the doctor for approval to go and evaluate your neighbor.

Question:
My husband was discharged from a hospital over the weekend. I though he needed to have home care but on the weekend, no one was there to arrange it. What should I have done?

Answer:
Anyone going home from the hospital or nursing home who has Medicare and is homebound (except for going to their doctor appointments, etc.), should have a skilled need that qualifies them for home care. Call Home Care anytime- on weekends there is an on call nurse who can arrange Home Care if the criteria is met and with a physician order.

Question:
I have stayed in a nursing home on the Medicare floor for this past 3 weeks. My Medicare coverage is up and I will return home soon. Does this mean I can't have home care covered by Medicare on discharge to home?

Answer:
You would start over regarding Medicare coverage for home care. With an MD order, home care can start the day after your arrival home. Nursing home coverage and Home Care Medicare coverage are not related.

Question:
Is there a limit to the times per year someone can have home healthcare services? My neighbor received home healthcare visits 3 months ago after a fractured hip repair. Now she's been sick with the flu which turned into pneumonia. Could home healthcare services be started again?

Answer:
With her Doctor's order, home healthcare services can be restarted. Even though she was discharged from home healthcare services after the hip fracture episode, she now has a new problem that qualifies her for home healthcare services again. There is no limit of the number days or number of times per year a Medicare recipient can receive home healthcare services. The qualifications for Medicare Home Care include a skilled need for nursing and/or therapy, a MD order, and the necessity to remain homebound while receiving services.

Question:
Are there any medical conditions when Medicare coverage continues longer than a few weeks or months?

Answer:
For Medicare covered persons who have a Foley catheter, Medicare covers for catheter change as ordered by the Doctor, and often a Home Health Aide to assist with bathing and grooming. Pernicious Anemia and other blood problems requiring Vitamin B12 injections monthly are also covered, as well as Home Health Aide. Medicare requires the patient to be primarily homebound, and the Doctor must order services.