Home Care in Newport Beach CA
We are pleased to announce that Optimal Senior Care Solutions has recently received its Home Care Organization (HCO) license from the California Dept. of Social Services. The new law effective in 2016 requires that all HCO’s obtain a license before they can provide home care services. All Home Care Aides or HCAs (caregivers) must:
- Be W-2 employees of the HCO
- Be cleared through the DOJ and FBI
- Have a current TB test negative
- Receive training
“Obtaining our license is a significant milestone for the company. Even before implementation of the new law, we were already in compliance with the regulations and are pleased that now all home care agencies must meet the same requirements”, says company president, Dan Segal. “According to the Home Care Services Bureau, there have been approximately 1,100 agencies statewide that have applied for licensure. A conservative estimate is that there may be 2,000 or more agencies that have been or are currently operating in the state. So it’s important for consumers to be aware of the law and that they verify that their agency is licensed” added Dan. Consumers can verify that an HCO is licensed by going to https://secure.dss.ca.gov/CareFacilitySearch/home/index .
California law established the Home Care Services Consumer Protection Act which, as of January 2016, requires Home Care Organizations to be licensed and creates a public online registry for Home Care Aides who have been background checked. This law is intended to promote consumer protection for elderly and disabled individuals who hire private aides to come into their homes and provide assistance with activities of daily living. The law went into effect January 1st with the intent to issue license by July 1st 2016. To be eligible for this all operating home care agencies had to file an application or an intent to file by December 31st 2015.
The newly formed Home Care Services Bureau will oversee the licensing and oversight of the Home Care Organizations, the application process for the Home Care Aides, and the maintenance of the Registry. The Caregiver Background Check Bureau will oversee the criminal background checks.
State licensing has been long overdue in California. Until this year there were no regulations or other requirements placed upon Home Care Organizations or HCO’s (agencies) to assure quality of care and safety of the client. Unfortunately, the new law does not apply to independent caregivers that clients often hire which puts the burden on the client and their family to be sure the caregiver is competent and trustworthy and has no criminal history.
For more information or further explanation of the new law please call Optimal Senior Care Solutions at 949-535-2211.
