Home Health & Hospice Week

DOL may revise companionship exemption, endorses penalties for misclassifying contractors. Federal changes for your home health agency or hospice aren't just coming from Medicare -- the Department of Labor could soon make a big difference in your operations. That's because the DOL's Wage and Hour Division is considering revising the definition of the companionship exemption, which exempts companion aides from Fair Labor and Standards Act requirements for minimum wage and overtime pay. The DOL plans to issue a proposed rule on the matter in October 2011, it says in its regulatory agenda published in the April 26 Federal Register. "DOL intends to consider whether the scope of the companionship exemption as currently defined in the regulations continues to be appropriate in light of substantial changes in the home care industry over the last 35 years," the agency says in a fact sheet about the initiative. For one, the DOL wants to [...]