Why You May Want to Hire Home Health Aides Through an Agency – Despite the Cost – Center for Retirement Research
One of the challenges of obtaining home health care for the elderly is its cost, which is often beyond the means of individuals and their families. The cost barrier is especially true for aides employed by home health agencies, which are often more expensive than hiring an aide directly.
On my Risking Old Age in America podcast, I recently spoke with Wendy Adlerstein, co-owner of First Light Home Care in west suburban Boston, about the benefits of hiring help through an agency and what goes into the extra costs. He also called for nationwide licensing of home health centers to ensure that they all deliver what they promise.
Here are some excerpts from our conversation:
Risk Aging in America (ROA): How hard or easy is it to hire home health workers?
Wendy Adlerstein: It is indeed a laborious process. We have a team dedicated exclusively to recruiting and hiring. They filter hundreds of candidates. And we only hire about 3 percent of the people we talk to.
ROA: How has the recent crackdown on immigrants affected your employment or current employees?
Adlerstein: Unfortunately, we can definitely see that there has been a change. Indeed, the number of available caregivers is decreasing. One of the biggest things we are also seeing is that the process of renewing labor authorization documents is very slow, if not completely stopped.
ROA: How much do you pay your employees?
Adlerstein: In this state, agencies pay caregivers between $19 and $24 an hour.
ROA: And do you pay FICA and other benefits?
Adlerstein: Yes. They are all W-2 workers.
ROA: I understand that Massachusetts is one of the few states that does not regulate home health centers and that people in your field would actually like to have a law. Why is that?
Adlerstein: Yes, that is a very big topic right now because there is a bill in the Legislature that is being debated on this. It would create standards that duplicate what we already do. Unfortunately, there are agencies out there that do not follow the same guidelines. This can create security issues and concerns for anyone who opens their home and lets someone in without all the proper supervision and background checks. License to establish and practice home care in Massachusetts.
Listen to the entire interview here.
Articles
00:29 Home Health Care Agency Overview
01:13 Benefits of being part of a Franchise
01:52 Wendy’s Background and Journey
02:54 The Difference Between Private and Non-Profit Home Care
03:38 Regular Clients and Home Health Assistance
04:59 Recruitment and Evaluation Process
06:15 The Impact of Migration Policies
08:46 Workers Compensation and Client Expenses
14:09 Regulation and Licensing in Home Care
20:12 Challenges and Recommendations 24:50 Conclusion and Final Thoughts
For more from Harry Margolis, check out his Risking Old Age in America blog and podcast. He also answers consumer property planning questions on AskHarry.info. To stay updated on the Squared Away blog, join our free mailing list.
