Home health agency (HHA): State licensure is required. In Florida, this will generally suffice to accept patients covered by third-party insurance plans although Florida adds the requirement of accreditation. Home health agencies can provide skilled or non-skilled care. Skilled care requires the skills of a licensed professional, such as a nurse or therapist. Non-skilled care is custodial or personal in nature, encompassing assistance with Activities of Daily Living (ADLs) such as bathing, grooming, eating and toileting, and/or Instrumental Activities of Daily Living (IADLs) like using the telephone, cooking, housekeeping and marketing. This last category represents activities that individuals need to perform in order to maintain independent living.

Nurse registry (NR): State licensure is required; NRs can provide skilled or non-skilled care, but they may not be Medicare-certified. Accreditation exists for NRs and here, too, the requirements exceed Florida licensing guidelines. You may want to base this decision on your feasibility studies of the NR field and payor requirements.

Read more by visiting our blogs:
Part One: What type of care do I want to provide?
The Requirements to open a Nurse Registry in Florida