Owning a business in any industry can be a challenge, but home care is an opportunity for you to start a business that gives back to others. If you’re considering starting your own home care (AKA caregiver) registry, go through this list and see if it appeals to you.
There is an inherent amount of risk involved with business ownership, and we’ll walk you through the most important notes.
Why open a home care registry?
There is continual demand for in-home care services. As the costs of care for traditional home care agency services increase, families are taking note of other options for their loved ones: home care registries.
According to Genworth, the average cost of care per month for home care is $5,462, with the nuance that the cost of home care has surpassed that of assisted living, $4,774, by comparison.
Home care registries offer added flexibility to clients and caregivers while giving owners the option to manage the business with no supervision over the day-to-day care, scheduling, etc…
Let’s talk more about what the day-to-day looks like for a home care registry owner.
A healthy dose of risk-tolerance
In traditional home care agencies, business owners completely oversee care and have administrative teams that are deep into the scheduling operations, business operations, and more.
That oversight doesn’t occur in home care registry work because families are in charge of the care along with the caregiver you would match them with. They handle the relationship from then on.
This creates a void that on one hand gives you flexibility, but also a limited understanding of how things may change week over week. When opening a home care registry, you have to be prepared to wade the tides of weekly hour increases and decreases, caregivers moving on from work, etc. If you are able to navigate and pivot quickly, this could be a great business opportunity for you.
An aptitude for compliance understanding and execution
The rules and regulations for traditional in-home care services are a bit easier to follow and are intensive from a W2 standpoint. For home care registries, on the other hand, you need to have a fine tooth comb to understand, digest, and execute on a changing regulatory landscape.
A common point in inspections and audits for registries is the proper delineation of caregivers as independent contractors, requiring separation or partition between them and your business.
Certain states like New York, for example, are not as amenable to 1099 caregivers as other states, and this requires a working knowledge and up-to-date understanding of the regulations you need to maintain compliance with.
As an example, here are some of the regulations that home care placement agencies (the term for a registry in Colorado) are subject to in Colorado:
- Charge a set fee to a client to refer them to a home care worker on your roster
- You don’t provide any services to clients beyond making the referral
- You are not allowed to provide any skilled or medical services (like medication administration, for example)
- You cannot claim to be licensed or as a certified home care agency
These regulations shape and form a home care registry’s daily operations. If you’re able to keep up with the pace of regulations and make sure that your business is always in tip-top compliance shape, a home care registry may be a good option for you as a business owner.
An understanding of business acumen
As a home care registry owner, you set the tone for the mission, vision, and values of your organization. This also requires you to be the face of the brand, leading the charge on business operations, etc.
In comparison to traditional home care agencies, you have more flexibility with your bottom line, to be able to spend more on marketing and advertising or other necessary business expenses.
- Are you able to pull reports to understand the health of your business from your registry management program?
- Are you able to coach and mentor your team members to perform at maximum efficiency and row in the same direction as your company?
- Are you able to make the tough decisions that involve both emotions and logic?
These are a few questions to think through when you assess business acumen, and what’s required of you to own a home care registry.
Ally is your business partner every step of the way
At Ally, we’re the first software purpose-built for home care registries, and we’re excited to hear that you are looking into owning a home care registry. There are many benefits to business ownership, especially in the home care industry.
We need more people like you who care about others and want to work in a business that accommodates your work-life balance.
As you go through your journey of assessing different businesses and narrowing down options, we’re a resource for you as well. Our platform helps you to stay compliant with EVV regulations, DOL audits, and more throughout the lifespan of your business.
Get Awesome Content Delivered Straight to Your Inbox!
Posts by topic
