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The Economical Consumer Directed Health Care

To counter the problem of health-care financing in the USA, Consumer-directed health care (referred as CDHC) has emerged in the recent past, designed to decrease the health spending by providing financial incentive for consumers to choose the best health care proposition. With both public and private sector financiers looking to reduce their health-care expenses, CDHC has been opted as a way of bringing greater efficiency and cost control into health care.Consumer Directed Health Care refers to health insurance plans that permit patients to use medical payment products like personal Health Savings Accounts, Health Reimbursement Arrangements etc as a mode of settling the routine medical claims. So, patients have more control over their health budgets as they pay through consumer-controlled accounts for routine medical claims as opposed to a fixed health insurance benefit. Principally, it aims at giving patients greater control over their health care, both economically and medically. It is also meant to improve healthy competition among health care providers to increase the range of patient control.Consider this example. A health savings account (HSA) linked with a high deductible health plan lets you take care of routine claims through HSA and other high claims through the regular health plan. This is a typical CDHC plan with a lower premium than a traditional health plan premium, allowing you to take charge of your routine health-care expenses in turn making you more aware of the cost and quality of care involved before spending your money.There are tax advantages as well like in the case of HSA. However, each individual needs are different and a health insurance plan must be taken after careful consideration and professional advice on the matter.

4 Tips For Finding The Best Home Health Care Provider

Home health care is a delicate matter and must be handled with tact and commitment. There may come a time when a parent or other elderly loved one is no longer able to safely support themselves on their own. Home health care is a viable alternative to sending someone to a nursing home and is a convenient option that enables your loved one to get the care they need without having to be uprooted from their home. With an enormous amount of options, it can be tricky to find the best service but continue reading and you will discover several easy tips for finding a high quality home health care provider.Get References/RecommendationsAny successful home health care provider should have references or recommendations readily available. Talk to your loved one’s doctors, attorney, financial advisor and other members of the community that may know of companies that offer a premium quality service. Your local Area Agency on Aging will have a list of providers you can look at. If this agency or a hospital social work department can give a recommendation that would be great because they rarely do so and tend to save such references for the very best services.Find Out Your LiabilityWhenever you hire a private home health care provider, please understand that there will be certain liabilities involved. Be sure to learn more about insurance, taxes, worker’s compensation, training and background checks before making any decisions. If you use an employment agency to make a hire for example, you could become the official employer of the caregiver which means responsibility for payment, taxes and numerous other obligations.Analyze Their EquipmentOnly consider home health care providers that use cutting edge communications and monitoring technology. Don’t be afraid to ask questions. For example: How long does it take the service provider to find out if their employee has not turned up? How do they communicate with you? Do they provide online monitoring? Be specific with your questions and don’t be fobbed off by vague answers.Know Your ProviderAs this company will be responsible for taking care of your loved one, you need to learn more about them and how they operate. Find out if they allow you and your loved one to interview candidates for the job and get information on how they train and support their team. Additionally, you need to find out how many different caregivers will be responsible for providing care. It is best if only 1-2 staff members are involved to maintain continuity. Your loved one should not be subjected to the confusion of having several different strange people in his/her home.Remember that home health care is not a ‘one size fits all’ solution and the company you choose should have the ability to provide a service specifically tailored to the needs of your loved one. The home care agency you choose should be licensed and subject to state regulations but there will always be qualifications and skills that sets one provider apart from all the rest. Don’t settle for second-rate home health care, do your research and ensure the person you love receives the best level of attention and support possible.