What is Skilled Home Health Care?

Skilled home health care can provide a wide array of services to a person who has been certified as homebound and requires skilled care (care that can only be performed by licensed clinicians including nurses, therapists, etc.) in the recovery process from illness, recent surgery or injury. To qualify for this care, a patient must have a physician’s order that prescribes this need and outlines the necessary services.

Homebound patients may require many types of skilled home health care. Examples include:

• Wound care for surgical wounds or pressure sores
• Intravenous or nutrition therapy
• Injections
• Monitoring of a serious illness
• Patient and caregiver education
• Occupational, physical and speech therapies

Eligibility

Insurance providers establish criteria for receiving Empath Home Health services. Most follow Medicare guidelines for home health services, which are listed below. We encourage you to talk to your provider about specific requirements.

• Patient must be homebound (leaving home for short periods of time and requires “considerable and taxing effort”)
• Patient must have a recent face to face encounter with their physician to establish medical necessity
• Care must be considered medically necessary
• Patient requires at least one skilled home health service
• Physician directs care in collaboration with Empath Home Health
• Care and services must be administered where patient lives

Paying for Care 

Empath Home Health accepts Medicare, Medicaid and many private insurance providers. Contact Empath Home Health for more information.