The program description should cover:
- Services offered (personal care, meal prep, medication reminders, etc.)
- Target population (elderly, disabled adults, etc.)
- Geographic service area (pre-filled from HCS 200)
- Hours of operation
- Client intake procedures
- How you match clients with caregivers
- Supervision and quality assurance methods
What the Law Says You Can (and Can't) Offer
California law defines exactly what counts as "home care services." Your program description should stay inside these lines.
Services you can offer (§ 1796.12(n)):- Bathing, dressing, feeding, exercising
- Personal hygiene and grooming
- Transferring, walking assistance, positioning
- Toileting and incontinence care
- Helping with self-administered medication
- Housekeeping, meal planning and prep, laundry
- Transportation, phone calls, correspondence
- Shopping for groceries or personal items
- Companionship
What you cannot do: Your aides CANNOT help with medication that requires a licensed health care professional. This is a hard line in the law. If your program description mentions anything medical, CDSS will flag it. Your agency must be licensed (§ 1796.12(j)). A "home care organization" is defined as an entity that arranges home care services and is "licensed pursuant to this chapter." That is what you are working toward right now.