Membership FAQs

What are the categories of NAHC membership?

Provider: The primary membership of the organization consists of home care and hospice providers. The majority of NAHC provider members are single agency providers. Provider members vote for NAHC officers, their regional board representative, and their sectional board representative. To keep up with the growth among corporate agency providers, hospices, and home care aide organizations, there are three other categories within the provider membership structure.

Corporate/subcorporate Provider Membership: This special provider membership was created to allow corporate providers to join their branch offices as well as their headquarters office. The dues structure and the voting rights differ slightly from the regular NAHC provider membership.

Associate: Associate members consist of commercial suppliers, vendors, and service organizations interested in providing products or services to the home care community. They receive substantial discounts on exhibiting, mailing labels, and advertising, which provide valuable exposure to the national home care and hospice community.

State Association: State association members consist of state home care and hospice associations. Such state associations are organized into the NAHC Forum of State Associations. They elect one representative to the NAHC Board of Directors.

Allied: Allied membership is similar to associate membership. This category has a lower dues structure to allow nonprofit organizations or institutions, such as universities, to benefit from NAHC membership.

What are the benefits of NAHC Provider membership?
The one great benefit NAHC offers its members is peace of mind. With a membership, you are not alone in your commitment to providing care and comfort to the nation's most frail directly in their homes. Through education, information, practical business advice, advocacy, and inspiration, NAHC is there for you, lending a supporting hand to caring professionals across the United States.

Here's a partial listing of the many benefits Provider members enjoy:

NAHC members set the direction and focus of the association, shaping the destiny of the entire community.
NAHC is not a building in Washington, DC, but rather an ideal shared by home care and hospice professionals across the country-providing the highest quality of care for each patient as if they were a loved one. NAHC is a unique membership-driven organization, where the direction and focus is set by members, not staff. Each member is encouraged to volunteer their insights and expertise to benefit all members. NAHC members are setting the course for the entire home care and hospice community by setting the direction of the leader-NAHC.

Expert advice is only one phone call away.
NAHC's dedicated team of experts is constantly tracking the latest trends and developments affecting home care and hospice. NAHC members are able to tap into this vital information at their convenience, giving them a competitive advantage over nonmembers. Whether it's a legal, regulatory, financial, or legislative question, NAHC has the expert ready to answer members' specific concerns.

NAHC legislative experts fight for your interests before Congress and the White House.
NAHC is the leading voice for home care and hospice before Congress and the White House, fighting for your interests around the clock. With an uncommon ability to marshall resources and forge coalitions, NAHC approaches legislative advocacy with a broad perspective. With over a combined 170 years of Hill experience, NAHC's adept legislative staff, led by Theresa Forster, is actively engaged in molding legislation, as well as being on top of all the late-breaking revisions affecting home care and hospice agencies. The association is guided by President Val J. Halamandaris, with over 35 years experience on Capitol Hill, and Senior Counsel, former US Senator Frank Moss, who served 18 years in the Senate and is known as the father of the Medicare and Medicaid home health benefit.

Expert advice and counsel from NAHC's in-house law firm, the Center for Health Care Law.
The Center for Health Care Law is like the cavalry charging to your legal rescue. Under the leadership of William A. Dombi, the Center provides NAHC members with free legal advice to understand the laws governing home care and hospice agencies, and discounted legal services for more complex needs. If you need a legal team to fight at your side, there is none better than the staff of the Center for Health Care Law.

Problemsolving by the best Regulatory Affairs specialists to cut through CMS's bureaucratic red tape.
When CMS and the FIs provide inconsistent information, clarity is only one phone call away-to NAHC's Regulatory Affairs Department, headed up by Mary St. Pierre. Nowhere else can you talk in depth with a specialist about your specific issues and receive a customized response to your questions. NAHC's experts are often consulted by the government as they formulate the rules you must follow, thus giving NAHC members the inside track in maneuvering through the labyrinth of government regulations and making sense out of the things that do not make sense.

NAHC provides the facts fast and accurately enabling members to control costs and operate more efficiently.
In today's cost-conscious environment, there is no more important element than data in keeping one's agency ahead of the pack. NAHC's dedicated team of researchers is constantly benchmarking the field to better track the latest trends and developments affecting home care and hospice. NAHC members are able to tap into this vital information at their convenience, giving them a competitive advantage over nonmembers.

NAHC members receive the latest information and in-depth analysis affecting their daily activities before any other source.
One thing NAHC does, and does it fast, is getting members the latest, most accurate news as soon as it happens-sometimes before the information is public. NAHC staff is involved in shaping policy with government agencies overseeing home care and hospice, gathering news and background information on everything that affects you. NAHC keeps its members ahead of the curve on all issues through several sources:

• Online Services, Visit Home Care Online and enjoy special members-only access areas. While visiting the web site be sure to look up your agency on the Home Care and Hospice Agency Locator — the largest worldwide consumer refurral network on line, attracting thousands of consumers daily. The Agency Locator is a free service for both providers and consumers.
  
  
• CARING magazine, NAHC's award-winning monthly, presents in-depth reviews of the latest home care and hospice trends, technology, and issues.
  
  
• NAHC's Member Network ListServ, an online forum for providers monitored by NAHC's experts, gives you instant access to over 1,500 colleagues from across the country. Giving NAHC members a quick and easy method to communicate with each other, just ask a question and receive advice from others in the field.
  
  
• NAHC Publications and Resources, including manuals, videos, handbooks, public relations materials, and novelties, are designed to assist you in your daily activities. All publications and resources are created by experts with the mission of providing you with the information you need in a easy-to-use format.

NAHC members save more on a wide range of services every agency needs in order to survive-savings equal or more than membership dues.
NAHC assists its members by arranging discounts and group purchasing agreements for products and services every agency uses on a daily basis. Some members recoup the cost of their NAHC membership just from the following savings:

Vaccines: Use your NAHC ID number to get your discounts and to negotiate individual pricing for high-volume orders. NAHC members are able to save on Measles, Mumps and Rubella II Vaccine, Pneumonia (Pneumovax 23), Influenza by Connaught, Adult Hepatitis B vaccine by Energix, and Mediva Flu vaccine, just to name a few.

Eli's Home Care Week: NAHC members can subscribe at the lowest rates ever offered for Eli's Home Care Week. NAHC members who also belong to their state association will be further entitled to a double discount. NAHC members can subscribe to Eli's for just $229 if you do not already receive the publication.

Home Health Aide Digest: Home Health Aide Digest is dedicated to nurturing the occupational and personal growth of home health and hospice aides and to increasing the recognition and prestige of their profession. As a special offer to NAHC members, all first-time subscribers to the Home Health Aide Digest will receive the post-test free for one year for all orders regardless of the quantity ordered. Normally, subscribers need to order 10 or more subscriptions to receive the free post-test. This represents a $60 savings for NAHC members.

NAHC Publications: NAHC is always striving to ease the daily burdens of home care providers and hospices. One way NAHC provides assistance is through our extensive list of resources - publications, manuals, and videos, to name a few. All publications and resources are created by home care and hospice experts with the mission of providing you with the information you need in an easy-to-use format. NAHC's resources provide the latest information, trends, and developments, with all items designed to keep your staff on the cutting edge. Subject areas covered include administrative and financial, Medicare, clinical, hospice, home care aide, and novelty items.

Additional Subscriptions to CARING: Included in your membership benefits is a subscription to CARING, NAHC's award-winning monthly magazine. For those agencies wishing to receive extra copies of this informative monthly, NAHC offers members a special discount of only $45 for additional subscriptions.

Caring Photography: Photographs can tell a story. Talented NAHC photographer Matthew Barrick creates images that show the compassion and commitment to caring that is the foundation of hospice and home care. The photos bear witness to the daily trials and tribulations of caregivers, their patients, and families. Chances are we have something within our thousands of stock images that will suit your needs. All our images are available for purchase and are sold on a usage basis, with NAHC members receiving substantial discounts off the list price.

NAHC Video Production Department: NAHC's in-house Video Production Department stands ready with reduced rates for members' video needs. NAHC can lower the high cost of producing your own video projects. Our team of specialists can create professional videos to use in promoting your agency on television, in meetings, or to potential customers. The Video Department will sit down with you, put together a script, and create a commercial - all at a substantial savings.

NAHC provides the best professional development and education anywhere.
NAHC offers a range of opportunities to stay abreast of the latest changes in home care and hospice, with NAHC members receiving substantial savings. Education keeps your agency on the cutting edge and allows you to increase your skills-translating into better and more efficient service to those you serve. From national conferences to publications, from the Annual Meeting to Home Care University's distance learning programs, NAHC offers many different avenues for its members to better themselves and their agency.

NAHC's Home Care and Hospice Job Exchange helps members recruit the best and brightest new employees.
Are you looking for a CEO, administrator, occupational therapist, or home care aide? NAHC members are able to recruit great new employees through the Home Care and Hospice Job Exchange, an on-line recruitment resource. Receiving nearly 15,000 hits per month, the International Job Exchange is the most useful recruitment medium for home care providers and hospices. NAHC members are able to list available positions at an incredible discount.

Accreditation Program for Home Care Aide Services: This nationally recognized accreditation program for home care aide services is designed especially for the non-Medicare certified agency that provides homemaking, personal assistance, and supportive care services to clients in their place of residence. Twelve basic standards address all aspects of the organization and serve as a model for an organization to deliver quality personal assistance and supportive care services.

Certified Home/Hospice Care Executive (CHCE): CHCE certification is available to eligible individuals in home care/hospice leadership positions. This includes executives and managers in provider organizations and those serving in related organizations such as consultants, accreditation and regulatory surveyors, and state home care associations. Certification is a sign of commitment to your profession as a home care or hospice executive. It communicates pride in your work and dedication to being fully versed in all of the areas of executive management required to effectively run a home care or hospice agency.

Certification for Home Care Aides: The Home Care Aide Certification Program establishes national standards for preparation of home care aides. Since its inception, the program has certified over 25,000 home care aides nationwide. The program is composed of three competency-based elements: training, skills demonstration, and a written examination.

The Home Care Aides Code of Ethics: A Workshop: This workshop is designed as an in-service or continuing education program for home care aides. Workshop materials include an instructor/facilitator's guide and fourteen case situations designed to facilitate application of the Code of Ethics through interactive group discussion. Also included are ten frameable copies of the Code of Ethics developed by the Home Care Aide Association of America and Home Care University, a workshop attendance roster, and certificates of attendance.

Distance Learning Courses: Programs were developed in cooperation with MGI Management Institute. For over 30 years, MGI has been a leader in continuing education for medical practitioners, managers, and engineers. Each program includes a manual, instructor support through a toll-free number, continuing education credits, and a money back guarantee if you are not satisfied.

NAHC members have their special interests represented free through complimentary membership in NAHC's affiliate organizations.
NAHC established several unincorporated affiliates, whose mission is to provide issue-specific advocacy in those areas. Each affiliate provides a forum for a segment of the home care and hospice community interested in a common set of issues, connecting those individuals for the promotion of the affiliate's specific issues and to share information amongst themselves. NAHC members are able to join any of the following affiliates at no additional cost:

• Pediatric Home Care Association of America
• Home Care Aide Association of America
• Voluntary Home Care Association of America
• National Association for Physicians in Home Care
• Hospital Home Care Association of America
• Home Medical Equipment Association of America
• Proprietary Home Care Association of America

NAHC members connect with home care and hospice providers around the world through complimentary and reduced membership dues in international organizations.
Providers around the world are developing new approaches and new concepts to serve patients in the home and, with a NAHC membership, you can tap into their approaches. NAHC members receive free reciprocal membership in the Canadian Home Care Association and the European Association of Care and Help at Home. Also, NAHC members receive a reduced membership rate in the World Homecare and Hospice Organization (WHHO), a dynamic network of global leaders and organizations dedicated to the interests of all patients, providers, home care associations, public and private sector agencies, hospices, and personal services practitioners. Sharing new ideas is a great opportunity to review your current operations and procedures to insure you are conducting business in the most efficient and cost-conscious way.

NAHC members receive substantial discounts for all NAHC meetings and conferences, considered the best available programming for home care providers and hospices.
One of the best opportunities for professional and personal development is at NAHC's conferences and meetings. Each event is planned with you in mind, examining issues, trends, and recent developments affecting you. With most events offering continuing education for nurses and accountants, NAHC's meetings and conferences provide for an uplifting gathering for caring professionals from around the country.

Workshops: Throughout the year, NAHC schedules workshops to address emerging issues affecting home care and hospice providers. All NAHC workshops are designed to provide you with the latest news and information to assist you in operating more efficiently and effectively under new circumstances. Members are informed of scheduled workshops through NAHC Report, special mailings or faxes, and posting on the Home Care ListServ.

Teleconferences: Additionally, NAHC conducts numerous teleconferences throughout the year. In the convenience of your office, NAHC brings to you the experts and specialists on home care and hospice to provide insights on the latest trends and developments. To participate, all you need is a telephone. With a speakerphone, you can invite as many of your staff into a conference room to benefit from the presentation. As with the workshops, members are informed of scheduled workshops through NAHC Report, special mailings or faxes, and posting on the Home Care ListServ.

NAHC brings together the leading home care and hospice vendors displaying the latest products and services at the HOMECARExpo.
NAHC members never need a map to find treasures because NAHC gathered them all at the HOMECARExpo, the most diverse product, service, and technology showcase for the home care and hospice community. Held in conjunction with NAHC's Annual Meeting, HOMECARExpo brings together the leading companies displaying their latest developments in more than 60 product and service categories, from accounting services to urological products. In our business-casual, no-pressure atmosphere, you'll be able to network with vendors to learn the most about their services and how their cutting-edge technologies can assist your important work.

From an intimate gathering to the largest professional gathering, NAHC members receive unparalleled networking opportunities with your peers and NAHC staff.
NAHC provides the home care and hospice community with a number of different methods to network with their colleagues, comparing notes on what strategies and programs worked and which approaches were counter-productive. This communication makes it easier for NAHC members to care for and provide higher quality services to their patients. NAHC often hears how uplifted members were following conversation with their peers through vehicles provided by NAHC. From a small gathering to a large meeting, NAHC is connecting the home care and hospice community together to share common experiences with one another.