Your dad is finally coming home from the hospital. Before he leaves, the discharge planner hands you a printed list of home health agencies that serve your area and asks which one you'd like to use. You look down at a column of names that all sound about the same, and you're not sure where to start.
You're not alone if that moment feels heavy. You want the best care for your dad, and you may be making this choice while you're also juggling work and family. The good news is that you can choose well without a medical background. Let's talk about the rights your family has, the free tools that help you compare agencies, and the questions that tell you the most.
You Have a Choice, and Medicare Protects It
Medicare gives your family a real say in who provides care.
Medicare gives your family a real say in who provides care. When your loved one needs home health care, Medicare says their doctor or care provider should give you a list of agencies near you. They also have to tell you if their organization has a money stake in any agency on that list. That way, you know where each suggestion comes from.
The agency you pick also affects what Medicare pays for. Medicare only pays for home health or hospice care from agencies it has approved. Ask each agency on your first call whether Medicare has approved it.
Families on hospice can also change their minds. Medicare's hospice guide says your loved one can switch to a different hospice once in each benefit period (a set stretch of time that Medicare covers). Ask each hospice how switching works in case you ever need it.
Start With What Oklahoma Already Checks
Every home care and hospice agency in Oklahoma needs a state license. The state health department gives out these licenses. Its Home Services Division checks that agencies keep following the state's basic rules. Have a concern about an agency? You can call the division at (405) 426-8470, send an email, or fill out a complaint form.
Some agencies also choose to earn accreditation. That means an outside group came in and reviewed how the agency works. Medicare approves certain groups to do this, including The Joint Commission, CHAP, and ACHC. When one of them accredits an agency, Medicare counts that as meeting its rules.
Accreditation is one helpful signal among several.
Accreditation is one helpful signal among several. A 2022 study looked at 7,697 home health agencies. In 2015 data, patients of accredited agencies went to the hospital a little less often (15.4% compared with 16.1%) and to the ER a little less often (11.6% compared with 12.9%). The researchers said the differences weren't always large, so it helps to look at accreditation along with everything else you learn.
What Medicare's Care Compare Can Tell You Before You Call
Care Compare is Medicare's free website for finding agencies near your loved one. It gives home health agencies star ratings. One rating comes from surveys of patients about their own care. The survey asks if staff were polite and respectful, explained things clearly, and talked with them about safety at home, medicines, and pain.
A missing rating often just means fewer families have taken the survey.
For hospice, Care Compare shows how each hospice scores on quality and what families said about their care. A hospice gets a family star rating only after 75 or more families fill out the survey. A smaller hospice in a rural Oklahoma town may not have stars yet. A missing rating often just means fewer families have taken the survey. You can learn the rest by calling the agency.
Questions to Ask on the First Call
A short phone call tells you a lot about how an agency works with families. If your loved one lives in a rural area, ask first whether the agency serves your town. Write down each agency's answers so you can compare them later.
For Any Home Health or Hospice Agency
- Do you serve our town or county, and where is your nearest office?
- Are you licensed by the Oklahoma State Department of Health and certified by Medicare?
- Are you accredited, and by which organization?
- How will you keep our family and our loved one's doctor updated?
- What happens during the first visit, and how soon can care start?
- Who do we call with a question between visits?
For Hospice
- What happens if we need help in the middle of the night?
- How does your team support family members?
Medicare's hospice guide says a hospice nurse and doctor are on call 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Hospice also includes grief and loss counseling for your family. Any hospice Medicare approves should be able to explain how its nighttime help and family support work.
How a Good Agency Answers
A quality agency welcomes every question your family brings.
A quality agency welcomes every question your family brings. You'll hear clear, patient answers in plain words, and if you ask for something in writing, they'll send it. They'll also give your family time to decide, even when your loved one needs care soon.
Ready to Find Your Path Forward?
That list from the hospital can feel lighter now. With a few good questions and Medicare's free tools, you can find an agency that fits your family. You don't have to walk this path alone. Every family's journey is different, and our care experts are ready to listen and help you find what's right for yours.
Sources
- Medicare.gov: Home Health Services
- Medicare.gov: Hospice Care Coverage
- Medicare Hospice Benefits (official Medicare booklet)
- Oklahoma State Department of Health: Home Services Division
- Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services: Accrediting Organizations
- Ma, Dutton, and Wu: Quality of Care in Home Health Agencies with and without Accreditation, Home Health Care Services Quarterly (2022)
- Medicare.gov: Care Compare
- Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services: Hospice Public Reporting
- Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services: Home Health Care CAHPS Survey
- CAHPS Hospice Survey: Star Ratings
