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Quality care means doing the right thing, at the right time, in the right way for the right person and producing the best possible results. The Medicare program regulates and enforces rules to ensure that nursing homes, home health agencies, and hospitals comply with federal standards for patient health and safety and quality of care. However, the quality of long-term care programs, services, and facilities may vary.

Here are some ways to learn about how long-term care programs and services in your area rate in quality:

• Ask friends and other people you know who use different kinds of long-term care services if they are happy with the services they get.

• Call your State or local Long-Term Care Ombudsman. Ombudsmen visit nursing homes and other long-term care facilities regularly to visit residents and take care of complaints. Your local area Ombudsman can also give you information on the most recent State inspection survey for long-term care facilities in your area. You can find their telephone number in the Helpful Contacts section.

• Look at the Nursing Home Compare and Home Health Compare sections on this website. You can also find out if a Continuing Care Retirement Community is accredited from the Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities website.

• Call your State Health Department. Ask if you can get information on the quality of nursing homes and other long-term care facilities and services in your area. You can get the telephone number of your State health department by looking in the blue pages of your local telephone book.

Page Last Updated: May 8, 2009