Part A covers inpatient hospitalizations, care in skilled nursing facilities, palliative care, and some home health care. Medicare fully pays for an assistant's expenses if your loved one needs specialized care. A home health assistant provides personal care services, such as bathing, dressing, and going to the bathroom. However, it's important to note that Medicare won't pay for an assistant if you only need personal care, but not specialized care.
They can also provide information about other housing options for older people, such as independent living, assisted living and memory care, all at no cost to older people and their families. The agencies that offer these services are called home care agencies and should not be confused with home health agencies that offer home health care services. Under Medicare Part B, you are eligible for home health care if you are homebound and need specialized care, even if you haven't been hospitalized before. Even with all of this information, differentiating between home care and home health care can be confusing.
Your Medicare home health care benefits will not change, and your access to home health care services should not be delayed due to the pre-application review process. Home health care is a wide range of health care services that you can receive at home in the event of an illness or injury. To qualify, your loved one must first meet the eligibility criteria for home health care covered by Medicare. In most cases, if it's part-time or intermittent, you may be able to receive skilled nursing care and home health care services for up to 8 hours a day (combined), for up to 28 hours a week.
You may leave your home for medical treatment or brief, infrequent absences for non-medical reasons, such as attending church services. Medicare pays for home health care for eligible, homebound older people who require essential medical services for the treatment of an illness or injury. A doctor or other medical professional must request home health care services and these must be provided by a Medicare-certified home health agency. If you receive your Medicare benefits through a Medicare Advantage (Part C) plan or another Medicare health plan, check with your plan for more information about your home health benefits.
Covered services and enrollment requirements vary depending on each state's home-based and community-based services program. The agency must also tell you (both verbally and in writing) if Medicare won't pay for the items or services it provides and how much you'll have to pay for them. You're generally not eligible for Medicare home health care benefits if you need full-time skilled nursing care for an extended period of time.
