Compliance
California Caregiver Meal and Rest Break Rules
California requires a 30-minute meal before the fifth hour and paid 10-minute rests, but Wage Order 15 exempts personal attendants. What agencies owe.
Resources
Resources for home care agencies
Page 2 of 6.
Compliance
California Home Care Aide Registration: How It Works
Caregivers at licensed California Home Care Organizations must register with CDSS: $35 for two years, Live Scan, TB test, 5 hours of training before client contact and 5 hours a year.
Compliance
Can Caregivers Give Medication? Reminders vs. Administration
Non-medical caregivers can remind, and in many states assist, but administering medication needs a nurse or nurse delegation. Four states' rules and how to write your policy.
Recruiting
Can You Hire Caregivers With No Experience? A 30-Day Training Plan
Yes. Hire for reliability and judgment, meet your state's training minimum before the first visit, pay for training time, and use shadow shifts before solo work.
Scheduling
Can You Let Caregivers Pick Their Own Shifts Without Losing Coverage?
Yes. Keep each client's regular caregivers assigned, open everything else to qualified caregivers, and approve swaps and pickups against weekly hours.
General
Can You Start a Home Care Agency From Your House?
Usually yes, if the state licenses the home as your place of business, zoning allows a home occupation, and records are locked away. What to check first.
Scheduling
Care Plan Template for Non-Medical Home Care
A fill-in care plan for non-medical home care: ADL and IADL tasks, preferences, safety, schedule and review dates, plus Texas, Minnesota and Medicaid rules.
Compliance
Caregiver Background Check Requirements: A Guide for Agencies
Most states require a criminal check before client contact, many fingerprint-based through the FBI. Five states' rules, FCRA steps, exclusion lists and rechecks.
Scheduling
Caregiver Call-Out Policy: How to Handle Call-Outs (With Template)
A call-out and no-call no-show policy for home care agencies, the coverage process that gets a replacement to the client, and the sick leave and bonus rules that constrain it.
Compliance
Caregiver Credential Tracking: CPR, TB, Licenses and Expirations
Track every caregiver credential with an expiry date, alert at 60 and 30 days, and block assignments when something lapses. Surveyors check the visit date.
Recruiting
Caregiver Interview Questions (and What Good Answers Sound Like)
Twenty structured interview questions for caregivers, what to listen for, what the ADA says you can't ask, and the FCRA steps for the background check.
Recruiting
Caregiver Job Description Template
A ready-to-post caregiver job description for non-medical home care: pay, schedule, duties, requirements and what you offer, plus the legal points a job post has to get right.
Operations
Caregiver Mileage Reimbursement: Rates and Policies
Federal law requires reimbursement only when car costs push pay below minimum wage; California and Illinois require it outright. The 2026 IRS rate is 72.5 cents, 76 cents from July 1.
Scheduling
Caregiver No-Call No-Show Policy (Template)
A no-call no-show is a missed visit with no contact before start time. Policy template, the first-hour response, when you can terminate, and what you must still pay.
Workforce
Caregiver Pay Rates by State: How to Set a Competitive Wage
Caregivers earned a median $17.21/hour in May 2025 (BLS), from $10.83 in Louisiana to $22.95 in Washington. How to set a wage that hires and still fits your bill rate.
Operations
Caregiver Payroll Burden: What Each Hour Really Costs
Payroll taxes, unemployment insurance, workers' comp and paid leave add 13–22% to every caregiver hour. Line-by-line breakdown and why turnover makes it worse.
Recruiting
Caregiver Performance Review Template
A one-page caregiver review built on real data: check-ins, call-outs, notes and client feedback. Do it at 90 days and yearly, rate 1 to 4, end with two goals.
Recruiting
Caregiver Referral Bonus Programs: How to Structure Them
Pay $250 to $500 per referred hire, split at 30 and 90 days, keep rules simple and pay on time. How referral bonuses are taxed and when they affect overtime.
Scheduling
Caregiver Route Planning: Cutting Drive Time Between Visits
Drive time between clients is paid time under the FLSA. How to zone clients, order each caregiver's day, fill call-outs nearby, and measure what routing saves.
Compliance
Caregiver Training Requirements by State: What Agencies Need to Know
There is no federal training rule for non-medical caregivers. States set hours from 5 to 75. Six states compared, with sources, plus what to document for a survey.
Compliance
Companion Care vs. Personal Care: What's the Difference for Your Agency?
Companion care is hands-off help; personal care is hands-on help with ADLs. The line decides your license, training hours, insurance and rates.
Compliance
Do Caregivers Need a TB Test, and How Often?
Most licensing states require TB screening before a caregiver's first visit. CDC dropped routine annual tests in 2019; states still set their own intervals.
Compliance
Do Home Care Agencies Have to Pay Caregivers Overtime?
Yes. Since January 1, 2015, agencies cannot use the companionship or live-in exemptions, so every caregiver gets time-and-a-half after 40 hours. Who is covered, what counts, and the 2025 proposal to change it.
Compliance
Do You Have to Pay Caregivers for Travel Time Between Clients?
Yes. Under the FLSA, drive time between clients during the workday is hours worked. What counts, what doesn't, how to pay it, and how mileage fits in.