Use of home health services: some findings from the National Medical Care Expenditure Survey.

Data from the National Medical Care Expenditure Survey (NMCES) are used to produce national estimates of the use and sources of payment for home health care services for various demographic groups. The findings indicate that age and health status are strongly associated with home health care use and the vast majority of home health care services are delivered to this population. Nevertheless, there are a large number of younger, relatively healthy people who also use home health care services. Such use is generally non-intensive, often involving only a single visit. In addition it was found that private insurance is only rarely mentioned as a source of payment for home health care.