Exploring Long-Term Home Care Solutions with Albert Eshoo & Joyce Barocas
Beyond Hospice: Home Health Agencies Plagued by UPICs and SMRCs
In recent years, home healthcare agencies have faced a growing number of class and collective action lawsuits alleging failure to pay overtime. In response, some employers have attempted to claim the companionship exemption...more
On March 9, 2026, the New York Department of Health (DOH) issued updated guidance for Licensed Home Care Services Agencies (LHCSAs), Medicaid Managed Care Organizations (MMCOs), Certified Home Health Agencies (CHHAs), former...more
A Pennsylvania federal court just found that a Philadelphia-area home health company misclassified its licensed professional nurses (LPNs) and home health aides (HHAs) as independent contractors, potentially putting the...more
The Office of Inspector General (“OIG”) recently issued OIG Advisory Opinion 25-12 (the “Opinion”) addressing a home care agency’s (“Agency’s”) plan to offer and advertise sign-on bonuses to prospective in-home caregivers...more
On December 30, 2025, the US Department of Health and Human Services Office of Inspector General (OIG) issued an unfavorable Advisory Opinion (AO) 25-12, concluding that a home care agency’s proposal to offer sign-on bonuses...more
On February 13, 2026, a federal district court in Pennsylvania entered summary judgment against a home health company, Amazing Care Home Healthcare Services LLC, and its owner and manager, in a lawsuit brought by the U.S....more
The Office of Inspector General (OIG) for the Department of Health and Human Services’ most recent unfavorable Advisory Opinion is a stern reminder to healthcare organizations to consider the fraud and abuse risks of offering...more
Virginia’s current paid sick leave law only covers home health workers. A new bill (HB 5), filed in November 2025, would expand coverage to all employees statewide. ...more
In this episode of The Sandwich Generation Survival Guide, host Candace Dellacona welcomes Albert Eshoo and Joyce Barocas, owners of Right at Home Home Care in New York City. They discuss their paths into the home care...more
The “companionship services” exemption to Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) minimum wage and overtime requirements would again be available to third-party agencies that employ home caregivers and live-in domestic service...more
On July 2, 2025, the U.S. Department of Labor (DOL)’s Wage and Hour Division (WHD) issued a proposed rule that would allow third-party home healthcare providers to rely on the domestic service exemption that existed under the...more
The Maine Legislature recently passed a bill that could soon place new limits on employers’ ability to conduct surveillance in the workplace and create new categories of enforcement action state labor officials. Due to the...more
The U.S. Department of Labor just quietly launched one of the most sweeping deregulatory efforts in recent memory, advancing over 60 proposals that could reshape workplace rules across industries. From overtime and minimum...more
In April 2025, a Nevada federal jury convicted Eduardo Lopez, a home healthcare staffing executive, for fixing the wages of home health nurses. The conviction marks the Department of Justice Antitrust Division’s (DOJ) first...more
Governor Newsom signed Senate Bill (“SB”) 1350, which expands the definition of employment to include some household domestic employees who work through agencies. SB 1350 will go into effect on July 1, 2025....more
To better assure profitable homecare visits and encourage higher productivity, many homecare employers compensate field staff on a “per visit” or “fee for visit” basis. While utilizing this kind of compensation system is...more
On August 9, 2024, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia upheld a lower court’s decision to dismiss a proposed class action accusing HHS of causing a shortage of home health aides willing to assist Medicare...more
In spring 2024, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) finalized the Medicaid access rule, which includes a provision that requires that 80% of Medicaid payments for most Medicaid-funded home health aide,...more
This week the 3rd Department released three new cases. Learn more below. Dexter Morgan v. Kinray, Inc., et al. (4/25/24) - In this case, the 3rd Dept. upheld a decision disallowing an occupational repetitive use claim. The...more
In May 2023, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (“CMS”) proposed a series of rule changes intended to help promote the availability of home and community-based services (“HCBS”) for Medicaid beneficiaries. Chief...more
On January 12, 2024, Governor Phil Murphy signed the Domestic Workers’ Bill of Rights (S723) into law, representing a landmark victory for labor rights groups across the state. The new law, effective July 2024, extends labor...more
The US Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) finalized important changes to the Medicare enrollment regulations applicable to hospices and home health agencies (HHAs), including increasing the level of screening that...more
In recent years, the Department of Labor’s Wage and Hour Division has increased enforcement activities in the home healthcare industry. On Tuesday, DOL announced recovery of over $500,000 from an Alabama agency found to have...more
A major change in Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) wage and hour jurisprudence has taken place, with BakerHostetler at the helm. In Clark, et al. v. A&L Home Care & Training Center, the Southern District of Ohio conditionally...more
The EEOC has filed suit in federal court against a home care provider, alleging it unlawfully discriminated against employees when it changed their work assignments to accommodate client preferences. The suit alleges the...more