What is Home Health Care

Home health care has two main components. The first is the orchestration of comprehensive medical assessments and treatments, including effective symptom control, to reach immediate and short term clinical goals after illness, hospitalization or surgery. The second is the education and training that allows patients to integrate new self-management skills into their daily lifestyle. Both are important in the recovery of optimal wellness and vitality.

See Our Services for a full discussion of the care Watermark at Home provides.

how to pay for Home Health Care

Home Health Care can be paid for in a number of ways. Medicare pays for care with the primary goal of improving the patient's current health condition so that the patient can live independently again. Specifically these conditions must be met:

• Patient is under the care of a physician
• Patient requires skilled nursing, occupational therapy, physical therapy or speech therapy on an intermittent basis
• Patient qualifies for Medicare
• Care is medically reasonable and necessary
• Patient is homebound*
• Patient's needs can be met on an intermittent or part-time basis
• Patient resides in a home or facility that does not perform skilled care (e.g., not in a nursing home or hospital)
• A plan of care is rendered under the guidance of a physician
  

*Patients may be considered homebound if absences from the residence are short and infrequent or trips are made for the purpose of receiving medical treatment (e.g., medical appointments). Attending ceremonies of a religious nature does not generally disqualify a patient from being considered homebound. A patient who is unable to leave home without the help of assistive devices such as canes or walkers or who has a mental illness that may preclude leaving the home would also be considered homebound.

Another means of paying for Home Health Care is called Private Pay. If a patient does not qualify for Medicare (see above), especially if services rendered are not medical, then expenses may be paid by private long-term care insurance or directly by the patient.

Watermark at Home accepts insurance from the following:

• Administrative Enterprises
• APIPA
• Blue Cross/Blue Shield of Arizona &/or Out of State plans
• Bridgeway
• Coram
• Evercare
• GEHA – Government Employers
• Health Association
• Gentiva/CareCentrix
• Health Choice
• Health Net
• Humana
• ICA State Compensation
• IntraCorp
• Option Care of Arizona
• Options Plus – Health Net
• Pima County Risk Management
• Pima Health System
• PMSI
• Professional Health Care Network, LLC – PHCN
• Republic Indemnity
• Secure Horizon
• State Compensation Fund
• United Health Care

For a discussion of long term care insurance by AARP, follow this link.