Lets Patients Compare Home Health Agencies

Consumers are being given the opportunity to be smarter and wiser in their selection of home health agencies.

In late January, 2016, CMS introduced the first patient experience of care star ratings on Home Health Compare: www.medicare.gov/homehealthcompare/

Known as Home Health Care Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (HHCAHPS) Survey star ratings, these measures evaluate patients’ experiences with home health agencies.

The first 2017 update for Home Health Compare took place in January. This update included the Quality of Patient Care star rating and quality measure values shown in the preview reports distributed in early October, 2016.

The HHCAHPS Survey star ratings report patients’ experiences of care ranging from one star to five stars using data from patients (or the family or friends of patients) that have been treated by the agency. Five stars is the highest rating and reflects the best patient experience.

Patients can compare information on others’ experiences of home health care at these agencies through the HHCAHPS Survey star ratings. The following five HHCAHPS Survey star ratings are available for each home health agency listed on the website:

1. Care of patients
2. Communication between providers and patients
3. Specific care issues
4. Overall rating of care provided by the home health agency
5. Survey summary star rating

This star system supports the larger effort across the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) to build a health care system that delivers better care, spends health care dollars more wisely, and results in healthier people. Patients can now look at home healthcare star ratings in these primary health areas:

• Hospitals
• Nursing Homes
• Long-Term Care
• Physicians
• Dialysis Facilities
• Inpatient Rehabilitation Facilities
• Medicare Plans
• Other Medical Suppliers