What it Means to be Homebound

To qualify for home health care, you must be homebound unless not required by your payer. Medicare requires homebound status for all home health patients.

You are considered homebound if you can’t leave your home under normal, everyday circumstances. When you do leave the home, it requires a taxing effort and assistance from another person – particularly when getting in and out of an automobile – or from a walking device such as a cane, walker or wheelchair. Being homebound means you can only leave the home to receive medical care and make other short, infrequent but necessary trips. Common examples of acceptable absences from the home include:

• Attending a religious and/or memorial service
• Going to a family celebration such as a reunion or graduation
• Taking a brief walk or car ride for fresh air and/or exercise
• Making an occasional trip to the barber or salon

If you are homebound and need skilled nursing care, VNA Home Health can help. We’ve been assisting homebound patients with their health care needs since 1891. Contact us today to let us know how we can help you.