Can I give free services, gifts, or cash to new patients as an incentive to sign up for services with my agency? To current patients I am serving?
No. If you have the following or similar questions, your home health agency will need to contact your attorney for legal advice: We recently printed coupon cards offering “8 hours of free services” with the purchase of 2 weeks (at least 40 hours per week) of home care services. There are other exclusions and limitations on the bottom of the card. These cards have no cash value, but we haven’t yet distributed any since we are scrutinizing our marketing practices to ensure that we are not violating any of the new laws. These cards would potentially be given to clients who live in at home or in facilities, including assisted living facilities. Some discharge planners and case managers from facilities with whom we have relationships may also choose to distribute these cards to potential clients. Even though virtually all first-time clients would be eligible for this offer, I want to be sure that no one will accuse us of offering special deals to those clients who reside in facilities.
