How Do I Pay for Home Care Services
Medicare, Medicaid and most employer-sponsored HMO and PPO plans will only reimburse you for intermittent visits from a home care nurse on a temporary basis and only when your loved one has a specific qualifying medical diagnosis. In general, these types of insurance policies are not designed to pay for ongoing, hourly caregiving services that are classified as “Long-Term Care.” (Use the Official Medicare Eligibility Tool to learn more.)
That said, there are many other financial options available to you in order to pay for ongoing care services:
- Long-term care insurance
- Reverse mortgages
- Employer-sponsored Health Savings Account (HSA) or Flexible Spending Account (FSA)
- Employee-sponsored caregiving stipends, such as "Back-Up Care" programs for employees who are adult caregivers and travel for work
- Family trust funds
- Workers' compensation insurance
- Catastrophic auto insurance
- State-subsidized home- and community-based services, often referred to as "Medical Waiver" programs. (Age and income qualifications do apply.)