How to choose a home care agency in Maryland

The right home care agency in Maryland is licensed as a Residential Service Agency, screens and trains its caregivers, supervises the care with a written plan you approve, and clearly explains its contract terms. Beyond that, the differences that matter most are consistency of caregivers, how the agency handles a bad match, and whether you can actually reach someone when you need to.

Use the questions below on every agency you talk to. A good one will answer them clearly and without defensiveness.

Licensing

• Are you a licensed Maryland Residential Service Agency? What’s your license number? You can verify it with the Department of Health’s Office of Health Care Quality. Selectives’ license is RSA-02896.
• Are you insured and bonded? Ask for the liability coverage and whether caregivers are covered by workers’ compensation. Hiring privately puts that risk on you.

Caregivers

• Are caregivers your employees or independent contractors? With an agency employee, the agency handles payroll, taxes, insurance, training and cover. With a contractor referral, much of that falls to you.
• What’s your screening process? Expect a criminal background check, identity and work-authorization verification, credential checks, health/TB screening and references at a minimum — all required of a Maryland RSA.
• What training do caregivers get, and how often? Ask about orientation before the first shift, ongoing in-service training, and dementia-specific training for memory-care clients.
• Will the same caregiver come each visit? Consistency matters more than almost anything. Ask how they keep the team small and what happens when your caregiver is sick or on leave.
• What if the match isn’t right? The answer should be “tell us and we’ll change it” — no penalty, no awkward conversation with the caregiver.

Supervision and the care plan

• Who writes the care plan, and do we approve it? There should be a written plan, based on an in-home consultation, that you sign off before care starts.
• How is care supervised? Ask who the care coordinator is, how often they check in with the family and the caregiver, and how often supervisory visits happen.
• What happens if a caregiver notices a problem? There should be a clear reporting process and same-day contact with the family for anything of concern.

Contract and cost

• Is there a long-term contract or a minimum number of hours? Ask about the contract term, minimum visit length and notice needed to change visits or end the agreement.
• What’s the hourly rate, and what’s the notice period to cancel a shift? Get it in writing.
• How and when am I billed, and what payment methods do you take?
• Do you work with long-term care insurance, Veterans benefits or Medicaid waivers? Ask which specific programs they’re set up to bill.
• Is the consultation free? It should be, with no obligation.

Local and reachable

Ask who answers the phone — a local office or a national call center — and what the arrangement is outside office hours. A locally owned agency where the coordinator knows your family’s name behaves differently from a franchise call queue when something goes wrong at 6 p.m. on a Friday.

Red flags

• Can’t or won’t give a license number.
• Pushes a long contract or a large deposit before an assessment.
• Vague about screening (“don’t worry, they’re all great”).
• No written care plan, or won’t let you meet the caregiver first.
• Advertises ratings, awards or reviews it can’t show you.

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Selectives Home Care is a locally owned, licensed Maryland RSA (RSA-02896). We’re happy to answer every question above on a first call — free, and with no obligation.

This article is general information, not medical, legal or financial advice. For clinical questions, speak to your doctor.