As a Caregiver, personal attendant, personal care aide or in home care worker there are many new requirement  which will have to be met in order to work for an Home Care Organization (HCO) . These requirements are due to a new law called the Home Care Consumer Protection Act (AB 1217). 

Home Care Aide (HCA) is the title which the Home Care Services Bureau has created for anyone working as a  caregiver, personal attendant, personal care aide or in home care worker.  The Home Care Services Bureau is the department which regulates Home Care Organizations and maintains the Home Care Aide Registry in the state of California. The Caregiver Background Check Bureau is the department which regulates background checks and exemptions. These 2 bureaus work together to regulate the Home Care Consumer Protection Act (AB 1217)

To become an HCA you must meet the requirements of AB 1217. It is your  responsibility as a caregiver to make sure you have met the regulations of AB 1217 and are placed on the Home Care Aide registry. 

As a home care aide (HCA) you will need to be placed on the Home Care Aide registry, meet the requirements of AB 1217, and complete a minimum of three hours of entry-level training prior to presence with a client, as follows:   

  1. Three hours of entry level training  which should consist of:
    1. Safety training, including basic safety precautions
    2. Emergency procedures
    3. Infection control.
  2. As a HCA you will need to prove you are free of active Tuberculosis either through a negative TB skin test or through chest X-ray. TB clearance must be provided to your employer with in 7 days of the hire date or 90 day prior to the date of hire.
    1. HCAs are required to provide ongoing TB clearance at least once every 2 years. 
    2. Home Care Organization/Employer must keep  a copy on file of the TB clearance and make sure clearance is provided by you the HCA every 2 years. The examination is a condition of initial and continuing employment at the HCO.
  3. As a HCA you will be a mandated reporter and  sign SOC 341A which is a signed statement acknowledging requirement to report suspected abuse of dependent  adults or elders.
  4. You also must submit an application (HCS 100) for HCA registration to HCSB with the application fee and the signed criminal record statement (LIC 508)
  5. You will need to  submit finger prints for Live-Scan clearance (LIC 9163) along with fees for Live-Scan

In addition to the entry level training requirements you the HCA shall complete a minimum of five hours of annual training. The annual training shall relate to core competencies and be population specific, which shall include, but not be limited to, the following areas: 

  1. Clients’ rights and safety
  2. How to provide for, and respond to, a client’s daily living needs
  3. How to report, prevent, and detect abuse and neglect
  4. How to assist a client with personal hygiene and other home care services
  5. If transportation services are provided, how to safely transport a client