Questions people ask us
Frequently asked questions
The questions people ask most when they call a home health agency — answered in everyday language, whether you're looking into care for yourself or for someone you love.
Straight answers
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Does Medicare pay for home health care?
Yes, for eligible patients. When your doctor orders skilled care — nursing, physical, occupational, or speech therapy, or medical social services — and you meet Medicare's conditions, Medicare covers home health visits, and the covered visits generally cost you nothing out of pocket. Home health aide help on its own (bathing, dressing, or meals without a skilled need) is not covered by Medicare — that's where Medicaid long-term-care plans, long-term-care insurance, or private pay come in. Call us and we'll walk you through which applies.
Who qualifies — and what does "homebound" mean?
Medicare home health generally requires three things: a physician's order, a need for skilled care, and being homebound. Homebound doesn't mean you can never leave the house — it means leaving takes considerable effort or help, for example because of illness, injury, or weakness after a hospital stay. Trips to the doctor, church, or a family event don't disqualify you. We check eligibility with you before care starts, at no cost.
Do I need to be in the hospital first?
No. Many patients start home health straight from home — after a fall, a change in a chronic condition, or when daily tasks quietly get harder. A hospital stay is one way people come to us; a doctor's order from a regular office visit works just as well. And private-pay home health aide care needs no order at all.
Do I need a doctor's referral to call you?
You can call us first — many people do. For Medicare-covered skilled care, a physician's order is required before visits begin, and we're glad to coordinate with your doctor's office to request one. For private-pay home health aide care, no order is needed and care can often begin within 48 hours.
How quickly can care start?
Skilled home health visits begin within 24 hours of the order and any authorization. Private-pay home health aide care can usually start within 48 hours, with no eligibility wait. Private duty nursing starts after the hours are approved and the shifts are staffed — we tell you where things stand at each step. Referrals are acknowledged the same business day.
What's the difference between home health and home care?
Home health is clinical care — nurses and therapists treating wounds, managing medications, rebuilding strength — ordered by a doctor and typically covered by Medicare for eligible patients. Home care is everyday hands-on help — bathing, dressing, and meals — from a Home Health Aide or CNA. We provide both, from one local team, so you don't have to figure out the vocabulary before you call.
What is private duty nursing?
It is one nurse caring for one person at home for hours at a time — any hour of the day or night — instead of a short visit. We provide private duty nursing for adults and for children. A doctor orders it, and we confirm coverage before care starts.
Do you care for children?
Yes, and we would be glad to meet yours. We provide pediatric private duty nursing — a licensed nurse in your home for a full shift — for children and young adults under 21 with complex medical needs. Call us whenever you're ready. We'll listen first, then talk through your child's care with you.
What happens on the first visit?
A registered nurse comes to the home, usually within a day or two of your orders. Expect a thorough visit: they review your medications and history, check the home for safety, listen to what you and your family want care to accomplish, and build the plan of care with your doctor. It's also your chance to ask everything — the first visit is as much conversation as it is assessment.
Who will be coming into my home?
Licensed nurses and therapists, medical social workers, and certified aides — every one of them licensed or certified for their role, credential-verified, background-screened, and supervised by our own clinical team. You're never left to vet or manage anyone on your own.
Will I have the same caregiver each time?
As much as we possibly can, yes. With home health aide care, we work to send the same aide each visit, so you're not getting to know someone new every time. With skilled care, we keep your team small so the faces stay familiar. And if a caregiver ever isn't the right match, just let us know — we're glad to make a change.
Will Medicare pay my family member to take care of me?
Under Medicare, no — Medicare pays for skilled visits from a certified agency, not wages for family caregivers. Some Florida Medicaid long-term-care plans do have participant-directed options that can involve family; the rules are specific, so call us and we'll help you understand what your plan allows.
What insurance do you accept?
Medicare, Florida Medicaid (including long-term-care managed-care plans), many Medicare Advantage plans, long-term-care insurance, and private pay. Plans and networks change, so the simplest path is to call with your plan name — we'll check it and let you know what's covered and what to expect.
What areas do you serve?
Five Florida counties: Hillsborough, Polk, Manatee, Highlands, and Hardee — including Tampa, Brandon, Riverview, Plant City, Lakeland, Winter Haven, Bartow, Bradenton, Palmetto, Sebring, Avon Park, Wauchula, and Zolfo Springs. If you're anywhere in those counties, we likely serve your community.
Is my information kept private?
Yes. We ask you not to include medical details in the online form — a name, a number, and a sentence is plenty — and we never sell your information. Anything you share is handled under our privacy practices, and clinical documents should come to us by phone or secure fax rather than through the website.
What if I need help after office hours?
Call the same number — (813) 400-0324. Outside office hours it reaches our on-call line. For a medical emergency, always call 911 first.
More detail: Coverage & Payment · Our services · Where we serve
Private duty nursing
A nurse at home, for hours at a time
For adults who need more than a short visit.
Who is private duty nursing for?
It fits an adult who needs a nurse's skills for hours at a time, not a short visit — for example tracheostomy or ventilator care, tube feedings, frequent medicines, or seizure watch. A doctor has to order it. You do not need to be coming from a hospital. If you're not sure, call us and we'll help you work out which service fits.
What is the process?
You call, or your doctor or case manager sends a referral. Our registered nurse visits the home and writes a plan of care from the doctor's orders. If a health plan or program is paying, it decides the approved hours. If you are paying privately, you and your doctor set them. Then we match the nurses and build the schedule with you.
What are the payment options?
Some long-term care programs and insurance policies may cover private duty nursing, and families can also pay privately, with no approval to wait for. We check your coverage first and tell you about any cost before care starts. There is no charge for the first conversation.
How is this different from home health visits or a home health aide?
A home health visit is short — a nurse comes, does a task, and leaves. A home health aide helps with bathing, dressing, and meals, but can't do nursing tasks. Private duty nursing is a licensed nurse who stays the whole shift. Some families use more than one, and one local team provides all three.
Will we have the same nurses each week?
That is the goal. We build a small group of nurses around each person and work to keep it steady. When someone is out, we tell you who is coming.
For parents
Pediatric private duty nursing
For families caring for a child with complex medical needs.
Could my child qualify for private duty nursing?
Your child may qualify if they are under 21, need a nurse's skills for hours at a stretch rather than a short visit, and have an order from their own doctor, nurse practitioner, or physician assistant. Children who have a feeding tube, seizures, a tracheostomy, or breathing equipment may qualify. You don't need to have it all figured out before you call. We'll ask a few questions, listen, and give you an honest sense of whether it looks like a fit. And if your family is paying privately, there is nothing to qualify for — a doctor's order for the nursing is all that's needed.
Will we get to meet the nurses before care starts?
Yes. It starts with a Meet & Greet at your home with our Intake Director or Administrator and our Director of Nursing. Then, around your schedule, we set up Meet & Greets with the nurses our Director of Nursing feels are best suited to your child. You know your child best, so the choice is yours. If a nurse doesn't feel like the right fit, tell us, and we'll keep looking together.
What are the steps, and how long does it take?
There are a few steps, and we walk through each one with you. We start with a Meet & Greet at your home. Your child's doctor orders the nursing, and our registered nurse writes the plan of care. The health plan or program that pays for the care approves the hours. Then you meet the nurses our Director of Nursing has chosen for your child, before care begins. The approval is the one step we don't control, and timing differs from one plan to the next, so we aren't able to give you a start date in advance. Waiting can be hard, so we keep you updated at every step.
How is the nursing paid for?
It depends on your child's coverage. Private duty nursing can be paid for through health coverage, state programs, or privately. We check coverage before anything starts, work through the approval paperwork with you, and tell you up front about any cost to your family. You are welcome to ask us anything along the way.
Who decides how many hours of nursing my child receives?
The health plan or program that pays for the care makes that decision. They look at the doctor's order, your child's needs, and your family's schedule — work, school, and sleep all count. Because the decision is theirs, we aren't able to set the hours, and we can't promise a number. What we can do is help you and your child's doctor make the request clear and complete. If you are paying privately, you choose the hours yourself.
Can a nurse be with my child overnight?
Yes, when overnight hours are approved. Nights can be long when your child needs close watching. We provide nursing any hour of the day or night, up to 24 hours a day when that's what your child needs, so a nurse is awake at your child's side, watching over them, while your family sleeps.
What happens if a nurse can't make a shift?
We call you as soon as we know, and we work to fill the shift from the nurses your child already knows. Sometimes we won't be able to. When that happens, we tell you right away, so you are not left waiting. It helps to have a plan for a day like that — we can think it through with you ahead of time.
What happens when my child turns 21?
Your child's needs don't change on their birthday — only the coverage does. The good news: you won't need to look for a new agency. We care for adults too, so we can help your family move from pediatric private duty nursing into adult care with the same local team, depending on the long-term care benefits your child has as an adult. Call us well before the birthday, and we'll plan it together.
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