A Homemaker or Home Health Aide is a trained person who can come to a Veteran's home and help the Veteran take care of himself and his daily activities.
Homemakers and Home Health Aides are not nurses, but they are supervised by a registered nurse who will help assess the Veteran's daily living needs.
Homemakers and Home Health Aides are for Veterans who need skilled services, case management, and assistance with activities of daily living (e.g., bathing and getting dressed) or instrumental activities of daily living (e.g., fixing meals and taking medicines); are isolated or their caregiver is experiencing burden.
Homemaker and Home Health Aides services can be used in combination with other Home and Community Based Services.
Homemaker Home Health Aides work for an organization that has a contract with VA. A Homemaker or Home Health Aide can be used as a part of an alternative to nursing home care, and as a way to get Respite Care at home for Veterans and their family caregiver. The services of a Homemaker or Home Health Aide can help Veterans remain living in their own home and can serve Veterans of any age.
Since Homemaker Home Health Aide services are part of the VHA Medical Benefits Package, all enrolled Veterans are eligible IF they meet the clinical need for the service and it is available.
A co-payment for Homemaker and Home Health Aide services may be charged based on your eligibility status and means test criteria. Contact your VA social worker/case manager to complete the Application for Extended Care Benefits (VA Form 10-10EC).
Services are based on your assessed needs. Talk with a VA social worker to find out what specific help you may be able to receive. For example, an aide may be able to come to your house several times a week or just once in a while.
Examples of services you may be able to receive help with include:
- Eating
- Getting dressed
- Bathing
- Using the bathroom
- Moving from one place to another
- Shopping for food
- Cooking
- Cleaning
- Doing laundry
- Assisting with paying bills or managing money
- Taking medication
- Helping you get to appointments
- Using the telephone
You can continue to receive an aide's services for as long as you need extra help with your daily activities.
You can use a Shared Decision Making Worksheet to help you figure out what long term care services or settings may best meet your needs now or in the future.
There's also a Caregiver Self-Assessment. It can help your caregiver identify their own needs and decide how much support they can offer to you. Having this information from your caregiver, along with the involvement of your care team and social worker, will help you reach good long term care decisions.
Your physician or other primary care provider can answer questions about your medical needs. Some important questions to talk about with your social worker and family include:
- How much assistance do I need for my activities of daily living (e.g., bathing and getting dressed)?
- What are my caregiver's needs?
- How much independence and privacy do I want?
- What sort of social interactions are important to me?
- How much can I afford to pay for care each month?
If Homemaker or Home Health Aide services are right for you, your VA social worker may be able to help you make arrangements for those services.
You can also use the Helpful Websites listed in the Guide to Long Term Care to help you locate services in your community.
I like living in my own home, but my wife passed and there're things I just can't do for myself because I can't move around very well. The Home Health Aide helps with the laundry, cleaning, shopping and some of the cooking and getting me to appointments.
Pedro, Veteran
My mom and I both live in small towns about 130 miles apart. I visit twice a month, but between visits an aide helps her with bathing and fixing her hair and organizing her medicines in a weekly pill box.
Barbara, Veteran's daughter and caregiver
