Frequently Asked Questions
Are you certified by Medicare and Medicaid?
Advantage Health Systems is a Medicare certified Home Health Agency, but not Medicaid (Medi-CAL).
Do you provide caregivers?
Advantage Health Systems has Home Health Aides that are assigned when there is a specific need for personal care only on a short-time or part-time basis at home. Typical services include bathing, shampooing, changing bed linens, and assisting with other activities of daily living.
How do you respond to emergencies?
Advantage Health Systems does not operate an emergency service and does not want you to waste valuable time should you have a serious medical emergency. But there are instances when an emergency room visit or hospitalization can be avoided. If you call us at the first sign of a problem, we can often prevent you from being readmitted to the hospital. Our staff will work with you and your caregivers to identify your treatment options.
What specific services do you provide?
Our agency can provide a service or combination of services in your own home, all under the direction of your Primary Care Physician that includes: Skilled Nursing, Physical Therapy, Occupational Therapy, Speech Therapy, Medical Social Services, Home Health Aide and Infusion Therapy
What if my loved one doesn’t approve of the nurse or therapist and wants a new one?
Our patients are very important to us. Advantage Health Systems has an obligation to protect and promote the exercise of your rights. We can always arrange this for your satisfaction.
What insurance plans do you accept?
We accept payment for services from Medicare, Medi-Cal, worker’s compensation, private or commercial insurance or private pay. Some insurers may limit the number and type of home care visits that they will pay for and may require pre-certification and/or co-payments. We will inform you, your family, caregiver or representative of all changes and methods of payment before or upon admission.
Do you submit claims to the insurance agency or am I expected to do so?
Advantage Health Systems takes care of processing. Our agency will bill Medicare and Medi-Cal and for the services provided on your behalf. If you have other insurance, our agency will notify you before the services are provided so that you can make other financial arrangements for the necessary care.
Does the agency offer specialized behavioral health services?
Our agency does not provide such services, but we can refer you to some affiliated facilities we know.
Does the agency offer other discipline of home health (Nursing, psychical therapy, medical social work, certified home health aides)?
Yes, we provide all these skilled services.
Does agency have a healthcare professional on-duty 24 hours per day, 7 days a week to answer any questions?
We have our customer/patient answering service 24 hours a day, 7 days a week to answer any questions you may have concerning your care and treatment and to ensure that you receive the necessary home care services.
Is the agency led by experienced healthcare professionals?
All our healthcare professionals are experienced and trained in providing care in home.
Does the agency specialize on wound care?
Our agency has registered nurses who are experienced and trained to do wound treatment under the direction of your Primary Care Physician.
What are the steps we need to complete to refer my mom/dad/elderly patient to you?
We would need to contact your Primary Care Physician to obtain an order for Home Heath services based on your identified care needs.
What are the requirements to refer a patient to you?
You must be home bound as certified by a physician. We would bid to know who your Primary Care Physician is and what insurance you have.
How long do you provide your services?
Care is provided on an intermittent basis. This means, Medicare will not pay for our health care staff to stay with you for an extended period of time. We will only visit you for the length of time it takes to provide the specific treatment ordered by your physician.
Do your nurses stay with the patients as long as we need?
No, Nurses will only visit you for the length of time it takes to provide the specific skilled treatment ordered by your physician.