Home Care vs. Home Health Care in Arizona: What's the Difference?

Two services with nearly the same name

Families mix these up all the time, and it is not their fault. The names are almost identical. But the difference matters, because it decides who can help, what they are allowed to do, and who pays.

Home health care: medical care, ordered by a doctor

Home health care is skilled care delivered at home by licensed professionals, such as nurses and physical, occupational, or speech therapists. It usually follows a hospital stay, a surgery, or a change in a health condition.

• A doctor has to order it.
• Visits are short and scheduled — a nurse or therapist comes, does a specific task, and leaves.
• It is meant to be temporary, until the person has recovered or stabilized.
• Medicare can cover it when the person is homebound and needs part-time skilled care, among other conditions.

Home care: help with daily life

Home care, also called non-medical home care or personal care, is help with the things that get hard as people age or recover. A caregiver might help with:

• Bathing, dressing, grooming, and using the bathroom
• Cooking meals and making sure they are eaten
• Light housekeeping and laundry
• Medication reminders
• Rides to appointments and errands
• Company, conversation, and supervision for someone with memory loss

Visits can be a few hours a week, a few hours a day, or around the clock. It can last as long as it is needed.

Who pays for which

This is the part that surprises families most.

Medicare is built around medical care. It can pay for home health care when the requirements are met, but it generally does not pay for non-medical help with daily living — what Medicare calls custodial care — when that is the only care someone needs.

Home care is most often paid for privately, by the person or their family. Other sources some families use include long-term care insurance, veterans' benefits such as VA Aid and Attendance, and, for people who qualify, Arizona's Medicaid long-term care program, ALTCS. We wrote a separate guide on whether ALTCS pays for home care, and our veterans page covers VA benefits.

Rules and amounts change, so always confirm coverage with the program or insurer before you start.

Why many families use both

Picture your dad coming home after a hip replacement. A home health nurse visits a couple of times a week to check the incision, and a physical therapist comes to work on walking. That is home health care.

But between those visits, someone still has to help him shower safely, make lunch, get him to the follow-up appointment, and be there when he gets up at night. That is home care. The two fit together: one handles the medical piece, the other handles everything else. Our hospital-to-home page covers that first week in more detail.

Which one do you need?

Ask two questions:

• Is there a medical task a nurse or therapist needs to do? If yes, ask the doctor about home health care.
• Is daily life getting hard — bathing, meals, getting around, staying safe alone? If yes, that is home care.

If the answer to both is yes, you probably need both. If you are not sure, call us. We serve the Phoenix area and Tucson, and we will tell you honestly if what you need is something we do not provide.

Common questions