What changes a quote
Four things account for most of the difference between two quotes.
- How many people we coordinate. One parent and one care manager is a different job from two households, a guardian and providers in two cities
- How often reports go out, how detailed they are, and whether they run in one language or two
- Whether someone has to be present. A certification assessment visit, a facility tour or a hospital discharge meeting costs more than the same work done remotely
- Whether a date is already fixed. A discharge date compresses the whole sequence and usually adds hours
Two budgets, kept separate
Our fees pay for coordination, preparation and reporting. They never include the care itself: covered services such as home help and day care carry their own co-payment of 10 to 30 percent by income, paid directly to the provider. Care management by a care manager is fully covered by long-term care insurance, at no charge to the user.
You should always be able to see three separate lines: what goes to providers, what goes to the insurance co-payment and what goes to us.
For a first pass at the provider-side budget, try the care cost simulator: pick one of the seven certified care levels and a co-payment rate of 10, 20 or 30 percent.
The first consultation (30 minutes) is free, and so are the written scope and quote that follow. Nothing becomes paid work without your approval. Ending or shrinking the scope is written into the agreement, so it is not a negotiation.