Are health plans prepared for increased demand for home care services? 

MIRAMAR, Fla. – There’s a growing recognition among health plan leaders of the value of delivering health care within the home, according to the results of a survey conducted by Integrated Home Care Services. 

Ninety-one percent of the 47 health plan leaders surveyed say demand for home care services has risen over the past five years – and they expect that trend to continue. The majority of leaders also say home care costs have increased, with one-quarter saying they have increased more than 10%. 

"Nationally, there continues to be a significant growth in demand for home care services," said Christopher Bradbury, CEO of IHCS. "This is not surprising, given the surging senior population, the popularity of home care, the advances in homecare-related technology and the significantly lower costs of home care services when compared to facility-based care." 

Among other key findings in the report: 

• 80% predict the increase in home care utilization is permanent. 
• Only 38% say their organization is performing "very well" when it comes to supporting the home care needs of plan members, while 60% say they do this "moderately well." 
• Nearly two-thirds say executives meet rarely or occasionally to discuss home care. 
• 75% say reducing the administrative burden of home care is a top benefit of delegating services to a third party. About 50% say improving service coordination is a key benefit. 

"With the increasing demand for home care services, health plans are increasingly looking for new approaches to improve timely access to care, clinical outcomes, patient satisfaction and overall affordability," said Bradbury. "Fortunately, there is significant innovation taking place, not only in home-based quality of care, but also in improving the patient experience and delivering significant savings. Technology, clinical excellence, data insights, deeper care coordination, and value-based arrangements are driving forces around many of the innovative and effective approaches used by health plans." 

IHCS is an independent home care benefits administrator of home health, DME and home infusion services.