travel time

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I am working with a New start up home care company and we are struggling with how to charge and track for both travel time and mileage for our staff. WE have a odometer reading tracker on visit note but that does not account for travel time. Beginning in 2015, home care workers will need to be paid for travel time. Wondering what others out there are doing. Any thoughts?

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Specializes in Complex pedi to LTC/SA & now a manager.

Use a standard map program whether google maps or mapquest.

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Specializes in NICU, PICU, Transport, L&D, Hospice.

When working in home care and hospice I was hourly and was paid my base rate for all care and travel. Mileage was based upon my data entry but was checked by a basic map program if the miles seemed excessive.

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Specializes in ER, Forensic Nurse, SANE.

With all the travel time, traffic, people not home after you get there, phone calls and paper work, thats why Salary works best.

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When I have used Google maps and Mapquest for routes, I have always found that the estimated travel time was way, way off, so if you use these I would come up with a standard amount to add to the travel time to make it closer to reality. I would think adding 15-20 minutes would be appropriate in many cases.

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Specializes in NICU, PICU, Transport, L&D, Hospice.
With all the travel time, traffic, people not home after you get there, phone calls and paper work, thats why Salary works best.

In my experience too many HH agencies try to abuse the exempt status of salaried RNs.

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I am pay per visit, am i reading this correctly, is it a federal regualtion to pay for travel time????

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Specializes in Complex pedi to LTC/SA & now a manager.

In my agencies you are paid either mileage or hourly wage for travel between clients. Wages if you have a less than 30 min "break" excluding travel as in leave case A at 9:30 and have approximately 25 mile drive to case B and arrive at 10:30 you are paid wages, if you leave case C at 9:30 and have a 25 mile drive to case D but don't arrive at case B until noon (and there was no traffic or detour delaying your arrival, such as you decided to space your cases this way ) you are paid mileage

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Specializes in Pedi.

OP, this already IS a federal requirement: http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=&esrc=s&source=web&cd=1&ved=0CB4QFjAA&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.dol.gov%2Fwhd%2Fregs%2Fcompliance%2Fwhdfs22.pdf&ei=MdoMVMO9L8u1yASZ_YGACg&usg=AFQjCNFZ7Dsx-YYR_vKrtRs78LwFTEKeCQ&sig2=85tMbZL_6lJeMiT0H0OPCw&bvm=bv.74649129,d.aWw

See "travel that's all in a day's work."

And here: http://www.dol.gov/dol/topic/workhours/traveltime.htm

This is why pay-per-visit is currently being challenged in court. Amedysis and Gentiva are both in the middle of huge class action lawsuits about their failure to compensate their per-visit staff appropriately.

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i worked hh for 8 month and just quit. never heard travel time pay. we have to 6 pts daily for apply 8 hours salary. if not meet, company not pay 8 hours per day and will call you to talk. they have estimate every 2 weeks. so for me, travel time is wasting time because we can not make visit. glad to hear the new rule.

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