How to chose the best Home Care Package Providers?
Your decision of which Home Care Package Provider is extremely important. There’s a lot riding on your choice and most importantly, your ability to live at home independently for as long as you want to.
Before signing with any Provider make sure to ask them any questions that you might be having including information about their fees and the services that they could offer.
Administration fees
The industry norm for Provider fees is 25% of a package. The main reason for this big Provider fees is Case Management which we believe should never exceed more than 13-15% and should include all administration costs as well.
Another way to guarantee a lower fee is to forego case management altogether and choose a Provider who offers self-management. With this method you are likely to pay between 13-15% in fees.
At Happy Living our clients thrive under the self-management model which is 13% in fees but for those whose care needs change over time or decide self-management is no longer the right fit, we also have our fully case-managed (23%) service which we seamlessly switch clients to.
Additional fees
A traditional Approved Home Care Package Provider may take up to 50% of your package funds in administration and case management fees. This leaves you with minimal funds left for your much needed care services.
It’s also important to be wary of extra fees such as a set-up fee, an exit fee, a daily care fee, added costs for phone calls, and surcharges for using support workers of your own choice.
Make sure you ask Providers for all their hidden fees before choosing to sign with them.
At Happy Living we are completely transparent. We charge an unbeatable low 13% flat fee and that’s it. Meaning you have the maximum funds will be available and allocated for your care needs.
Fees for choosing external support services
Some Providers will let you use support services of your choice, but the catch is that they will add a surcharge on the hourly rate for doing so.
For example, let’s say you have a gardener you trust and have been using for a long time. Now that you have a Home Care Package, you’d like to make good use of your package and pay your gardener with those funds instead.
Unfortunately, with some Providers, although they’ll allow you to continue using your gardener, they’ll also make you pay an hourly surcharge on top of the rate you currently pay.
The result is that you’ll often end up paying 25% more for the same service which is unreasonable.
Start searching for the provider that could suit your needs today.
If you would like to learn more about a Home Care Package, don’t hesitate to reach out to our friendly Care Expert team on 1300 911 728.
