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What is TLC Services?
What is the history and background
of TLC Services and Homeward Bound Services?
What is the difference between
Medicare and Medicaid?
How do I initiate in-home care
services?
How does the service work?
What kind of in-home care services
do you offer under the Assisted Living Service Agreement?
Who is the Assisted Living Service
Agreement for?
What is the Assisted Living Service
Agreement NOT designed to do?
Why is Homeward Bound not an Insurance
Product?
Who can sell the Assisted Living
Service Agreement?
What are the main advantages to
the Assisted Living Service Agreement?
What are the important features
or benefits of the Assisted Living Service Agreement?
You advertise that you accept everyone
with few exceptions - what are those exceptions?
The customer’s biggest fear
is being sent to a nursing home. Would the Assisted Living Service
Agreement respond to that fear?
Who ARE the home-care givers and
how do we know they are qualified?
How are Homeward Bound Services
caregivers different than those who provide care a Nursing Home?
If clients aren’t satisfied
with their caregiver - is there anything they can do?
Does Homeward Bound accept credit
cards?
So how does an agent get appointed
with Homeward Bound Services?
Where is your home office located,
and in what states do you conduct business in?
How long has Homeward Bound been
in business?
If I have additional questions
about the Assisted Living Service Agreement, whom should I contact?
Homeward Bound Services has a Marketing
Division called TLC Services. TLC Services was formed specifically
to supply you, our representatives, with anything you may need to
make a better sale. One of these services is creating and mailing
out newsletters on a regular basis to give you access to information,
free supplies, and let you know our incentive bonuses for the coming
season. If you are not on our list, but would like to be, give our
office a call toll free at 1-888-332-1718.
The Assisted Living Service Agreement can only
be provided through field representatives. Representatives usually
offer all kinds of Long Term Care products. TLC Services, is the
marketing company representing Homeward Bound Services. TLC provides
the representatives with the tools they need to offer Homeward Bound
Services to their clients who don’t qualify for LTC Insurance.
TLC Services provides free sales tools, free in-home presentation
kits, a toll-free phone number for answers, informational brochures,
newsletters, this show and more. TLC Services works to assist reps
with whatever they may need.
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Let us begin with a quick overview. The
main providers for care are: Medicaid Nursing Home Facilities, Private
Nursing Home Facilities, Assisted Living Facilities, Adult Day Care,
Respite Care, and At-Home Care. All of these long term care solutions
can be paid out-of-pocket for those who need care-BUT, at such high
monthly costs of $4,000 to $8,000 and rising, public awareness and
concern over the potential financial and emotional devastation of
this kind of loss created a need for insurance, and other forms
of risk management. So, the next major players entered the field
- the insurance companies. A lot of people saw an opportunity to
fill an enormous need. The idea was based on a traditional model
of insurance: client pays a premium and then, if and when the client
experiences a "qualifying event", either an accident or
illness that renders them incapable of performing at least one Activity
of Daily Living (such as dressing, bathing, walking, etc.) they
may submit a claim and collect a specific amount of insurance money
to go towards their choice of Private Nursing Home, Assisted Living
Facility or sometimes Home Care, depending on the Company and the
Plan.
Blinded by the dollar signs and haste to move
in on such a new and open market, a lot of companies really had
no idea at first what they were getting into - that this insurance
would be collected on more than any other kind of insurance. In
order to avoid or minimize rate increases to their clients, an insurance
company takes steps to lower their own risk, and that means strict
and highly discriminating underwriting practices. Unfortunately,
that leaves a vast number of individuals who do not qualify for
long term care insurance. This is especially frustrating for those
who, say, take insulin for diabetes and also have high blood pressure,
or some arthritis-very common ailments-and yet these will often
be considered uninsurable conditions, especially if existing together.
So where does that leave these uninsurable individuals?
They may go ahead and spend their own assets
on their choice of long-term care, spending down until they reach
poverty level, in which case, Medicaid provides care at specific
institutions. And choice is gone. These individuals are confined
in a situation where they may feel isolated, depressed, and uncomfortable.
This deep-rooted American belief in choice and
freedom in conjunction with the space created by the insurance companies
abandon of "high-risk" clients ultimately became the foundation
for the Homeward Bound Services’ product, the Assisted Living
Service Agreement.
Also, patients are now discharged from the hospital
"sicker and quicker," which has drastically increased
the demand for home care services. Recovery rate statistics confirm
that we are all better off receiving care in our homes. Individuals
recuperating at home eat better, sleep better and recover faster.
Many individuals realize that they can no longer rely on government-funded
programs for their future needs and are instead applying for long-term
care insurance policies. But as many as 40% of those that apply
for traditional long-term care insurance are turned down.
Homeward Bound Services offers the Assisted Living
Service Agreement, a program available to ALL, regardless of age
or medical history. This program is filling the void by providing
access to home care at deeply discounted rates. This innovative
approach offers customers the ability to purchase a contract for
a predetermined amount of service. These pre-paid, pre-need service
agreements have provided home care to many elderly people. So, with
the increased need for alternative home care services, Homeward
Bound Services provides customers affordable home care options,
so that no senior is left behind.
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-Medicaid
The Medicaid Program is managed by individual states and is available
only to persons with low income. Eligibility requirements are usually
complex and may vary from state to state. Medicaid covers only medical
services and the coverage may also vary from state to state and
individual to individual. In most states a person has to spend down
all of their savings, sell their home and all of their assets in
order to qualify for long-term care in a nursing home. Home care,
if available at all, is extremely limited and often difficult to
access.
-Medicare
Medicare is a federal insurance program for senior citizens. All
US citizens are entitled to receive Medicare benefits when they
turn age 65. This is a Federal benefit that pays for hospital stays
and may cover other medical expenses. Medicare has two parts, Part
A and Part B.
Medicare Part A, often referred to as Hospital
Insurance, covers skilled care such as hospital stays and medically
necessary skilled nursing facility care following a hospital stay.
Visiting nurses, physical, occupational and speech therapists providing
care in the home may also be covered under very strict federal guidelines.
A physician can order Bath visits by aides for a short period of
time as long as the patient is receiving skilled care at home. What
many folks do not know is that the bath visits by the aides must
end as soon as the nurses and therapists stop making the home visits.
Medicare Part B, often referred to as Medical
Insurance, helps pay for doctor’s services, outpatient hospital
services and other medical services that are certified by a doctor
as being medically necessary. This is a voluntary program and a
monthly premium must be paid.
In some areas of the country individuals may
have the option of participating in a Medicare Managed Care plans
in lieu of the traditional Medicare Part A and Part B. These HMO
plans contract with Medicare and provide or arrange for Medicare-covered
services. The requirement that services be medically necessary and
certified as such by a physician still applies.
Medicare does not offer complete health insurance
protection. To fill the gap private insurance companies sell Medicare
Supplement Insurance. This insurance is specifically designed to
compliment the Medicare benefits and requires that Medicare first
approve the service before benefits are paid.
As you can see there are many gaps in service
with government-sponsored program. Perhaps the most potentially
devastating gap in Medicare coverage is the limitation on non-medical
help in the home. Services such as: bathing, dressing, housekeeping,
laundry, meal prep, grocery shopping, and accompaniment to appointments;
are not covered by any Medicare plan. In order for people to live
independently in the comfort of their own homes, these services
are quite necessary. These services will be a 100% out-of-pocket
expense, ranging anywhere from $4,000 - $9,000 per month.
It is because of these gaps in the continuum
of care that Homeward Bounds Services developed the Assisted Living
Service Agreement!
Most people don't realize, and therefore are
not prepared for, the exorbitant cost of remaining independently
in their home as long as possible. These unaware and confused seniors
need YOUR help to educate and inform them about what Medicare and
Medicaid covers, and more importantly, what they do not cover. The
Assisted Living Services Agreement allows you to offer your clients
the CHOICE to obtain affordable home care and with family and friends
nearby.
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To initiate service, a customer simply calls
a 24-hour, 7-day-a-week, toll-free number 1-888-448-4487 to speak
with a service coordinator. There are no claim forms to complete
and no letters of medical necessity to obtain. There are no co-pays
to worry about or deductibles to meet. Homeward Bound Services and
the agency handle all billing and payment matters.
The service coordinator obtains basic information
about the needs of the customer and makes all the necessary arrangements
to initiate service. A LOCAL home care provider calls the customer
to set up an in home assessment which is performed by a nurse or
social worker. The service coordinator, the customer, the nurse
or social worker and the personal case manager from Homeward Bound
Services jointly develop a service plan and service schedule. In
all cases the Assisted Living Service Agreement consists of three
basic forms - the application, the notice of cancellation, and the
receipt. Medications and current health conditions must be listed
to assist with proper rate classification and to provide a true
medical profile of the customer. This provides proper rate determination,
helps to contain cost and is critical to the integrity of the program.
For the convenience of the customer, payment can be arranged on
an annual basis, semi-annual, quarterly, and on a monthly basis
through Bank draft. Customers do not incur surcharges on payments.
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Home Care Services for your customers are
provided by local home health agencies and must fall within the
terms of the contract and the scope of services delivered by home
health agencies.
The Assisted Living Service Agreement provides
the following services to customers:
The Service Provider will prepare and serve customer's
food/ utilize customer's laundry facilities and supplies for the
customer/ assist with bathing, showering, and grooming/ perform
light housekeeping for the customer’s living areas/ assist
customer with dressing and undressing/ assist customer with their
commode or bedpan needs and shop for customer's food and supplies
if desired.
This listing describes the specific services
available through the contract. Service providers also perform other
incidental tasks such as walking dogs, sending flowers or gifts
to customer’s family and friends, watering plants, taking out
the trash, making phone calls on behalf of the customer, reading
to the customer, communicating thoughts of good will and cheer,
and many other little things too numerous to list. You can be assured
that your client will receive the care and concern that they deserve.
As an additional benefit to our customers, HBS
offers one (1) free day of service (4 hours of service) per year,
even during the Waiting Period. Customers can elect to use this
visit for an initial consultation, or for an assessment visit when
seeking services on a Private Pay Basis.
Homeward Bound Services provides NON MEDICAL
services. HBS can coordinate their efforts with other services being
provided such as: physical therapy, respiratory therapy or infusion
therapy, etc. Medicare has provided services for skilled care in
the past and we see this trend continuing in the future. Should
a customer need an RN, LPN or other specialist, our service coordinator
will assist with referrals to appropriate agencies.
Services covered by the Assisted Living Service
Agreement are delivered in accordance with the Plan of Service.
This Plan of Service is different for each of your customers. It’s
custom designed to fit the need of your individual customer. The
Plan of Service is designed at the time of need by the customer,
the local home care agency, and Homeward Bound Services, Incorporated.
This Plan of Service outlines the services that are desired and
the schedule for the delivery of those services.
To initiate services, a customer simply makes
one telephone call!
At that time, an appointment will be made for
a Home Care Agency Coordinator to visit the client’s home -
to gather information regarding the activities the customer desires
as offered through the Assisted Living Service Agreement.
The Plan of Service is then developed - based
on the customer’s needs and the information gathered by the
local home care agency. The Plan of Service is reviewed and modified
as needed. Services continue until the Plan of Service has been
completed or until the customer has exhausted the hours of the contract.
HOMEWARD BOUND SERVICES REQUIRES AT LEAST 72
HOURS NOTICE TO SCHEDULE HOME CARE SERVICES.
Urgent requests can often times be processed
within 24 to 48 hours.
The Assisted Living Service Agreement is also
GUARANTEED renewable. Homeward Bound Services, Incorporated may
NOT cancel the agreement except for non-payment, fraud, or false
information reported on the application.
Homeward Bound Services, Incorporated reserves
the right to increase annual cost due to an increase in labor costs.
Increases are made only when necessary. However, fees will NEVER
increase or be modified during the "PAID TO DATE PERIOD".
For more information on our services call the Marketing Department
at
1-888-332-1718 (8:30 AM to 5:00 PM EST Monday Through Friday.)
When necessary - Homeward Bound does have an After Hours Hotline:
that number is 1-888-882-0206. Please only use this number after
5pm and on weekends.
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We provide the following - non-medical -
services in the comfort and safety of YOU OWN HOME: meal preparation,
bathing, dressing, toileting, laundry, cleaning, shopping, mobility,
homemaking, grooming & personal hygiene, and other incidental
services, such as accompaniment to Doctor's appointments, remind
to take medications, and MUCH MORE.
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It’s a wonderful option to help delay
and sometimes prevent institutional care, for those that do not
qualify for LTC insurance. People purchase blocks of hours for care
from TLC’s qualified field representatives. The services will
be delivered by approved Network Providers, screened especially
to ensure top-quality service is being provided. Clients get to
purchase these Home Care hours at highly discounted rates.
HBS has set up a National Fund to protect the
stability of the company, so that funds will always be available
to pay for Home Care services when they are requested. Services
are a phone call away, and there are no claim forms to fill out.
One example of how the program could be used is -- if an accident
or illness strikes one of our clients and they wish to recover at
home, they are ensured the highest level of care, right away, in
the safety and comfort of their own homes. Homeward Bound Services
focus’ on leadership and a strong commitment to our clients,
employees, sales representatives, and Network of Providers to ensure
that our vision for affordable, high-quality Home Care services
will be the choice of the future.
HOMEWARD BOUND SERVICES’ Assisted Living
Service Agreement HELPS:
• To promote recovery
• To assist customers as they recover from injury and/or illness
• And To help the customer maintain his or her independence
Please try to use this wording in your presentations
of the program. Again the appropriate wording is:
• To promote recovery
• To assist customers as they recover from injury and/or illness
• And to help the customer maintain his or her independence
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HOMEWARD BOUND SERVICES’ Assisted Living
Service Agreement is NOT designed to:
• Take the place of a long term care insurance policy
• It’s not to provide ongoing maintenance care for chronic
conditions
• and It isn’t designed to take the place of the primary
caregiver
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The program we have developed is the Assisted
Living Service Agreement. Through the Assisted Living Service Agreement,
Homeward Bound Services promotes choice for all Senior Citizens
through an alternative to Nursing Home confinement. The Assisted
Living Service Agreement, will allow those persons who do not qualify
for traditional Insurance the opportunity to receive quality Services
AT HOME - AND at discounted rates. This agreement is a service contract.
Customers are purchasing hours of home care services. The program
is pre-need and pre-paid. So customers are actually pre-paying for
services they will use in the future as the need arises.
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The Assisted Living Service Agreement is
offered in all 50 states, by qualified TLC representatives. You
do not have to be a licensed insurance agent to sell the Assisted
Living Service Agreement. Those interested in selling the Assisted
Living Agreement will need to meet established criteria. Once they
have been approved, an informational packet will be sent to them
so that they have everything they need to give their clients the
correct information and to easily get the program started. It’s
field-issued, so they can take care of their clients right in the
home at the time of the presentation - so we make it as easy as
possible to help their clients!
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Well, this is a good question, and one that
I could spend a long time answering. However, I can break it down
into six main points I would like to share that cover the main advantages
of the Assisted Living Service Agreement. In fact, I have a mnemonic
device, a mental trick, I use to remember these main points at my
in-home presentations. I call it “NO FEAR”, which I like
because it reminds me of the peace of mind I can bring to my clients.
The first part of “NO FEAR”, “NO”, stands for
NO Claim Forms, which means care is a phone-call away. This is a
major benefit because in the middle of a crisis, when someone needs
care, they don’t want to have to fill out a form. So HBS makes
it easy to access care in the time of need. The F, in “Fear”,
stands for “Field Issued”, which means that the contract
is left with the customer at the time of sale. They have something
tangible that they are buying, and may hold onto this contract immediately.
“E” Stands for Everyone, that is, Everyone is accepted
into this program, as long as they are not already in a nursing
home, in the hospital, or terminally ill. “A” stands for
Age. Unlike Insurance, there is No Age Limit for signing up clients
to the Assisted Living Service Agreement. And finally, “R”,
stands for Review Period. Clients have a three-day review period
to thoroughly read the contract and be certain of their decision.
SO… to remember the main advantages to the Assisted Living
Service Agreement, just think “NO FEAR”-you are removing
the fear of nursing home confinement to your clients who are most
likely to need it.
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I have my own but I believe that everyone
must come up with their own devices for memorization to really make
it stick, and sometimes, the sillier the better. It doesn’t
matter what you use to remember, just that it relates to the product
somehow so that you can make the connection when you are under the
pressure to recall. “NO FEAR” is definitely my favorite
and very useful when I’m under pressure in the home, but there
are many other ways to remember features and benefits of the services
that Homeward Bound Services provides. For example, you should make
sure to tell your clients that there are basic services provided:
Dressing, Meal Preparation, Toileting, Bathing, Laundry, Cleaning,
and Shopping. But there are numerous incidental services also provided
for such as: walking dogs, watering plants, taking out the trash,
sending gifts and mail, reading to the client, making phone calls
on behalf of the client, etc. For these “Activities of Daily
Living”, I usually remember these by thinking of a normal day,
from morning to evening, and let my common sense fill in. That’s
why I start with Dressing, then Meal Preparation, then Toileting,
then Bathing, then Laundry, then Cleaning, then Shopping. The other
incidental services I remember by thinking of the client’s
circle of influence, their family, friends, pets & plants and
their own personal needs. And I think of how a service provider
could help contact and make the connection from the client to their
circle of influence. So the incidental services would include, walking
dogs, feeding pets, phone calls, sending gifts and mail, and reading
and writing for the client. Pretty simple, not too much of a memory
trick there, but I think it’s good to review this stuff, especially
for the newer agents.
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Our program is a guaranteed field issue.
We accept everyone as long as they are not in a hospital nursing
home, or have a terminal illness. This is why the ALSA was developed.
We say a need where many were turned down by traditional long term
care insurance. People who are on oxygen or in a wheelchair or have
diabetes - these people don’t qualify for LTC insurance. These
people want - and need an option. The Assisted Living Services Agreement
fulfills this need. We can offer in-home services to everyone regardless
of age or medical conditions with those very few exceptions.
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Fear of being sent to a nursing home is
the highest motivating factor in your clients’ decision to
participate in our program. Although there will always be a need
for some to use nursing home facilities, no one WANTS to be sent
to a nursing home. Homeward Bound Services provides assisted living
services AT HOME, where your client WANTS to be. Many people report
feeling more valued, safer and more comfortable recuperating in
their own home. Studies have shown that having healthcare workers
visit elderly people at home prolongs life and helps prevent the
need for long-term care in a nursing home. Your clients WANT to
remain in the privacy and comfort of their own home. The Assisted
Living Service Agreement allows them to receive home care services
AT HOME where they WANT to be.
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The Homeward Bound Services network of providers
consists of qualified, trustworthy, carefully-screened care providers
from every state in the Nation. Each perspective provider goes through
a detailed qualification process. Providers are required to submit
proper licensing and insurance documents and are measured against
proven, established criteria before being accepted. You can assure
your customers that services will be delivered by well-established
home care agencies. Only qualified, trustworthy, and carefully screened
caregivers will be sent to our clients homes.- But what really makes
the difference are the standards of excellence Homeward Bound --
demands beyond all of the state regulations and procedures, to not
only find qualified providers -- but also find those who truly do
care.
Our Network of Providers continues to grow every
year, bringing in new and enthusiastic caregivers who really care
about their clients. We get feedback all the time from our clients
who report feeling valued, connected, safe and secure while receiving
care from our Providers in the comfort of their own homes. It is
not uncommon for people to feel sad or blue after an accident or
surgery. That’s why it’s so important to have caregivers
who understand and can assist patients in relieving the emotional
blues and encourage them to: get dressed every day, take walks,
and resume hobbies and social activities that they enjoy.
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Helping older people live IN THEIR OWN HOMES
for as long as possible is a very important issue, both to preserve
personal dignity as well as to lower healthcare costs. Many people
working in Nursing Homes are over-worked and under-paid-there are
just not enough beds or funds to support the number of people who
need these facilities in this day and age. By encouraging your customers
to do Long Term Care planning early, for instance… purchasing
pre-need services through Homeward Bound, you can ensure that your
customers feel free to live the longest, happiest lives possible,
in the comfort of their own homes. Further advantages HBS has over
traditional nursing home care is that - Care is only a phone-call
away, and a Personal Case Manager is assigned to each client. A
study in the British Medical Journal suggests that having healthcare
workers visit elderly people at home can prolong life and prevent
the need for long-term care in a nursing home. Insurance can help
some, but not even most, people. Our Service Providers are so well
trained in this field, they realize the gravity of their jobs, how
important their compassion and understanding is to their clients,
and what a tremendous impact their service is to quality of life.
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Homeward Bound Services’ number one
goal is client satisfaction. Arrangements can always be made for
a replacement if, for whatever reason, the client is not satisfied.
This would be a very rare case, because Homeward Bound puts so much
effort in the beginning to find only the best and most professional
people to provide this very personal and special service. We also
use Customer Surveys to insure our standards are continually met.
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YES. Not only do we except credit cards,
but we also have many other payment options to make this program
affordable for any budget. Clients can choose to pay up to three
years in advance in the initial contract, they can pay annually,
semi-annually, or make quarterly payments with no penalties. Even
though it is less expensive to pay two or three years up front,
not everyone wants to pay the money at once-so, there’s a lot
of payment plans available to make sure that clients can budget
for their Future Planning.
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First, call TLC Services, the marketing
company, and speak with one of the knowledgeable marketing experts.
Our advice is to make a list of questions before you make this call
so that you can get the most out of your phone call. TLC Services
will then forward a contracting kit to you, filled with information
about the company itself and the features and benefits of the Assisted
Living Service Agreement. The next step is to fill out the contract,
sign it and send it back to TLC Services. Upon receiving this contract,
TLC then sends out a sales kit that is filled with all the necessary
sales tools that you will need to complete a successful sale of
the HBS Assisted Living Service Agreement.
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Homeward Bound Services is a Pennsylvania
based company with representation in all fifty states. Our main
office is located outside of Philadelphia. Homeward Bound offers
the Assisted Living Service Agreement nationwide. Home Care Services
for our customers are provided by local home health agencies. Each
perspective provider goes through a detailed qualification process.
Providers are required to submit proper licensing and insurance
documents and are measured against proven, established criteria
before being accepted. Our Provider Relations Department at Homeward
Bound Services, works to ensure that our network of home care agencies
continues to grow. Client satisfaction is our utmost goal. You can
be assured that no matter what state you’re in, service will
always be delivered by qualified, carefully screened, honest and
dedicated caregivers- who have also had a criminal background check,
accordance with state rules regulations.
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Homeward Bound has been offering Home Care
Services for 7 years. Two years were regional on the East Coast
and the last 5 years through out the country. We have made a real
commitment to longevity in this field - HBS has a National Trust,
held separately in Washington D.C., created to insure that funds
for future services will be readily available when needed to pay
clients’ home care.
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Please call our customer service staff at
1-888-448-4487.
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