Virginia Association for Home Care and Hospice

04/05/2026

03/25/2026

Family members and patients are seeing the fraud headlines too.

Families are right to be cautious, and they are looking hard at who they trust in their homes.

One simple way to stand out: make sure your agency is listed in the VAHC member Agency Directory, so families and referral sources can quickly verify you’re part of a professional network.

When trust is low, affiliations matter more.

https://www.vahc.org/agency-directory #/

03/24/2026

Medicaid fraud continues in the headlines - and that will bring implications.

CMS is rolling out a sweeping fraud crackdown focused on Medicaid personal care and HCBS, including enhanced data analytics, tighter screening, and elevated scrutiny of “outlier” billing patterns.

Expect more audits, deeper looks at EVV, timekeeping, and service authorizations.

Two tips for agency owners:

Get audit-ready now: Clean up EVV, fix documentation gaps, and regularly self-audit authorizations vs. billed hours.

Formalize compliance: Make sure you have clear policies, staff training, and a process for investigating and correcting issues before CMS does.

Need more guidance? Members - schedule time wit us 1/1.

Non member? Reach out to explore options.

03/23/2026

👉 CMS’ FY 2026 hospice final rule is now in effect, bringing a 2.6% payment update and locking in HOPE implementation for quality reporting.

At the same time, CMS clarified that hospice in person attestations must be signed and dated, and streamlined some documentation expectation, aimed at reducing administrative burden while still guarding program integrity. The message is clear: agencies that invest in clean documentation, timely HOPE submissions, and strong clinical oversight will be best positioned as quality and compliance pressures grow

Check out our hospice webinar April 9 for the help you need in one place.



"If it was not documented, it wasn’t done" Hospice Hot Topics Series- If it Was Not Documented- It Was NOT Done!

Join us for this monthly webinar series designed to provide you with valuable insights quickly and efficiently. We look forward to keeping you up to date in this monthly update!

03/19/2026

Agency leaders - are you aware of the Labor Quotient (LQ) for direct care workers in your area?

It can be found at www.bls.gov and can provide good info regarding quantity and quality of worker.

Home care is being squeezed by labor market quality (LQ) trends in both Virginia and West Virginia.

In many counties, direct care roles have a low LQ.

This means a higher-than-average concentration of home care workers, but often at lower-than-average wages.

For owners, that means: plan around constant hiring, invest in training and culture, and use every available lever (rate advocacy, incentives, flexible scheduling) to stay competitive.

03/13/2026

Home care reimbursements ...

Margins are tight. Lost dollars hurt.

Cost pressures on home care and hospice are only going up, including wages, benefits, and compliance, as noted in the VA General Assembly update.

In this environment, every single dollar of reimbursement has to land where it belongs.

VAHC has helped members recover and protect hundreds of thousands of dollars over the years through audit support, billing guidance, and payer problem-solving. This is not the time to go it alone.

03/11/2026

Mid-session, West Virginia lawmakers are already moving policies that matter for home care.

The House has passed HB 5096, exempting personal care and IDD services from certificate of need which lowers barriers to expand HCBS capacity.

Broader CON repeal remains unresolved.

The Senate Health & Human Resources Committee advanced the Make West Virginia Healthy Act of 2026 and a new Caregiver Tax Credit Act, both aiming to strengthen nutrition, behavioral health, and caregiver support.

These decisions will shape how easily agencies can grow and how well families can access care at home.

03/07/2026

This Employee Appreciation Day, we celebrate the caregivers who make aging in place possible.

Nearly 1 in 4 Americans is a family caregiver, providing an estimated $470 billion in unpaid care each year, and paid caregivers multiply that impact in the home every day

To every home care worker : your work changes outcomes, and lives. You are unique individuals whose contributions are far reaching.

03/05/2026

Protect every dollar you earn.

VAHC's 2026 Spring Medicaid Conference & Trade Show is your chance to get out of fighting fires and solving problems and setting strategy.

Join peers, payers, and experts to learn what’s coming, what’s working, and how to protect every dollar you earn.



Less than 4 weeks away. Register here:

https://vahc.memberclicks.net/index.php?option=com_jevents&task=icalrepeat.detail&evid=600&Itemid=115&year=2026&month=03&day=31&title=2026-spring-medicaid-conference-and-trade-show&uid=504325598a1631dbbf60cbd9ed1cc0b5

03/02/2026

VA General Assembly Implications

02/26/2026

Today is “Write a Letter to an Elder Day”...a perfect moment to invest in the cognitive health that keeps aging in place possible.

Handwritten notes, stories, and photos stimulate memory, spark joy, and help reduce isolation for older adults living at home. Pair a simple letter with a phone call or visit, and you’re not just brightening a day,
you’re supporting brain health, emotional well-being, and the connections that make home care work.
We’re all in this together!

02/18/2026

🌪️ A new Virginia General Assembly session is underway, and bills are moving fast.

Even a single change to Medicaid, licensing, wage rules, or audits can dramatically impact home care reimbursement and access.

This is exactly why VAHC is, literally in the room, tracking language, testifying, and working to shape outcomes before they spiral.

Your voice (stories, data) helps us make the case that home care is critical to families and communities. ,