Does UnitedHealthcare Cover In Home Health Care?

Older adults often depend on home health care when recovering from surgery or injury or simply for help with daily activities that get more difficult with age. Without adequate health insurance, the cost of this type of care can weigh heavily on the finances of a retired person. 

UnitedHealthcare Medicare plans can help cover home health care services and products in limited circumstances.

Learn more about the types of UHC Medicare plans (the only Medicare plans offered in partnership with AARP) that can help pay for home health care, what they cost and how you may be able to find a plan where you live that covers home health care and more.

What Is Home Health Care?

Home health care describes a variety of health care services administered in the home to treat or manage an injury, illness or condition. Some examples of home health care can include:

• Wound care
• Injections
• Intravenous therapy 
• Physical, occupational or speech therapy
• Administering medications
• Medical social services
• Medical equipment and supplies like wheelchairs

Home health care is administered in a person’s place of residence, which is defined as the place where they make their home. This can include a private home or apartment, retirement home or assisted living center. 

Home health care can be split into two general categories: 

• Skilled care refers to care that can only be administered by trained health care professionals, such as physical therapy. 
  
  
• Custodial care, or personal care, refers to services that do not require any special training, such as assistance with dressing or eating. 

Most Medicare coverage of home health care applies only to skilled nursing care, and Original Medicare (Parts A and B) doesn’t typically pay for any custodial care services when that’s all the care a beneficiary needs.

Some UnitedHealthcare Medicare Advantage (Medicare Part C) plans cover more home health care than Original Medicare covers, and some UHC Medicare plans cover custodial care when:

• Skilled care is also needed
• The beneficiary is confined to their home
• The combined care totals less than 8 hours per day and less than 35 hours per week, or when there is a continuous need for occupational therapy
• The beneficiary is under the care of a physician

How Do UnitedHealthcare Medicare Advantage Plans Cover Home Health Care?

UnitedHealthcare Medicare Advantage plans are required to provide all the same benefits as Medicare Part A and Part B, and most UnitedHealthcare Medicare Advantage plans cover some extra benefits not found in Part A or Part B).

That means all UnitedHealthcare Medicare Advantage plans pay for any home health care services covered by Original Medicare, which can include (but is not limited to):

• Part-time skilled nursing care
• Physical therapy
• Occupational therapy
• Speech-language pathology services
• Medical social services
• Part-time home health aide (when also receiving skilled care)
• Injectable osteoporosis drugs for women
• Durable medical equipment
• Medical supplies for use at home
• Home hospice care

Read more information about how Medicare (and therefore, all UnitedHealthcare Medicare Advantage plans) covers home health care services.

UnitedHealthcare Medicare Advantage plans may also cover some extra benefits that may be of use to someone confined to the home. These can include:

• Home delivery of prescription drugs and certain over-the-counter health products
  
  
• Telehealth, which allows you to use video conferencing to conduct appointments with your doctor right from your own home
  
  
• A membership to Renew Active, a fitness and wellness program that can be done from home
  
  
• A 24-hour nurse hotline that connects you with a registered nurse over the phone at any time of day
  
  
• Covered transportation to doctor’s appointments, pharmacies and other health care-related travel
  
  
• HouseCalls, which is the UnitedHealthcare in-home health and wellness visits service

Do Medicare Supplement Plans Cover Home Health Care?

Medicare Supplement Insurance, or Medigap, supplements your Original Medicare benefits by covering your Medicare out-of-pocket expenses like copayments, coinsurance and deductibles. 

If you utilize home health care covered by your Original Medicare benefits, your UnitedHealthcare Medigap plan can help lower your out-of-pocket costs by covering a portion of your deductibles, copayments or coinsurance.

For example, Medicare Part B covers durable medical equipment but requires a 20% coinsurance payment. If you have a Medigap plan from UnitedHealthcare, that 20% coinsurance payment will be covered and you will owe nothing out of pocket if you’ve already hit your annual Part B deductible.

How Do I Learn More About UnitedHealthcare and Home Health Care Coverage?  

Contact a licensed agent to learn more about UnitedHealthcare/AARP Medicare plans that cover home health care or to learn about Medicare Advantage plans available in your area.