In 2008 -- amid the last recession -- Ryan Iwamoto and his co-founders started Los Angeles-based 24 Hour Home Care with $160,000 total of investment cash from family and friends. The company is now one of the largest privately owned home care companies in the U.S. with 19 locations spanning three states and over $115 million in projected revenue in 2020.

The growth that 24 Hour Home Care has seen over the last 12 years has been completely organic. Iwamoto, who serves as the president, has seen his company make the Inc. 5000 list recognizing the fastest growing companies in the country for eight years straight.

That success is due to the company’s ability to make innovative partnerships, its team and its ability to adapt on the fly -- like it did when COVID-19 arrived in California. The biggest, however, is its “secret sauce,” Iwamoto said.

For this episode of Disrupt, HHCN caught up with Iwamoto to discuss that secret sauce, as well as non-medical home care, Medicare Advantage and the company’s 12-year journey to the top of the industry.

Listen to this episode of Disrupt to learn:

— What company 24 Hour Home Care modeled itself after

— How it adjusted when COVID-19 hit and how it plans to keep growing

— How it wins partnerships with hospitals and MA plans

— And more!

Headquartered in Northern California, Medical Home Care Professionals is a small home health agency that has had to overcome big challenges over the past few years.

In 2018, Medical Home Care Professionals had to operate through the historic Carr Fire. Right after that, it had to deliver care through a record-breaking blizzard. Now, it’s battling through the COVID-19 crisis — and another devastating wildfire.

For this episode of Disrupt, HHCN caught up with Elaine Flores, the COO and administrator of Medical Home Care Professionals, to learn how her agency has survived what has sometimes felt like an endless wave of emergencies. During the conversation, Flores also touched on Medical Home Care Professionals' transition to the Patient-Driven Groupings Model (PDGM).

Listen to this episode of Disrupt to learn about:

— Keys for running a home health agency during times of crisis

— Best practices for ensuring continuity of care

— Medical Home Care Professionals' transition to PDGM

— And more!

In 2013, co-founder and CMO Dr. Clive Fields helped launch primary care provider VillageMD as a 13-physician practice. Seven years later, VillageMD has grown to a 2,500-physician practice -- one with an innovative care model partly shaped around the home.

As one of its leaders, Fields has a vision of going “back to the future” by returning to home- and community-based care. He’ll have plenty of firepower to accomplish that vision moving forward, as Walgreens Boots Alliance recently announced plans to invest $1 billion in equity and convertible debt into VillageMD over the next three years, including a $250 million equity investment completed in July.

For this episode of Disrupt, HHCN caught up with Fields to discuss everything there is to know about the future of home-based care, value-based payment models, primary care and more.

Listen to this episode of Disrupt to learn:

-- How Fields and his team grew VillageMD to where it is today

-- Why home-based care is so important to the future of health care

-- How VillageMD leverages home health and home care providers

-- And more!

Founded in 1966, Androscoggin Home Healthcare + Hospice is the largest independent, nonprofit provider of home health and hospice services in the state of Maine. On top of those core services, Androscoggin also offers palliative care, transitional care, virtual care and more.

At the helm of Androscoggin is CEO and President Ken Albert. Since the coronavirus began, Albert has helped his company overcome an array of challenges, including difficulties securing PPE and caring for patients in long-term care facilities.

For this episode of Disrupt, HHCN caught up with Albert to discuss those and other challenges, in addition to the future of telehealth and the home health industry at large. During the conversation, Albert also touched on the importance of supporting home health staff and helping team members cope through an incredibly difficult time.

Listen to this episode of Disrupt to learn:

-- How Androscoggin navigated through the early days of the coronavirus while also recovering from an EMR-related crisis

-- What providers can do to support their clinicians and caregivers during an emergency

-- Why Albert believes “the telehealth toothpaste isn't going back into the tube”

-- And more!

Home care agencies nationwide are eager to partner with Medicare Advantage plans, but doing so is easier said than done. However, mid-year flexibilities recently announced by CMS instantly opened up new opportunities for providers.

In this episode of Disrupt, you’ll hear from Anne Tumlinson, CEO of ATI innovations, who broke it all down. Tumlinson explained what the flexibilities mean for home care providers and how they can capitalize on those opportunities now and into the future.

Listen to this episode of Disrupt to learn:

-- How COVID-19 has shaken up the MA landscape to the benefit of home care providers

-- What MA decision makers take into account when creating plans and finding partners

-- Why the future of Medicare Advantage is looking brighter that ever

-- And much more

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While the coronavirus brings a number of direct challenges for home-based care operators, it presents several secondary hurdles as well. Among them: an exacerbation of mental illness and behavioral health conditions, especially for isolated older adults.

Nizhoni Health is a growing home health provider based in Massachusetts that specializes in caring for populations with acute mental illness. For this episode of Disrupt, HHCN caught up with Nizhoni’s founder and CEO, Joe McDonough, to discuss COVID-19’s impact, the heightened need for mental health services and more.

Listen to this episode of Disrupt to learn:

-- What the coronavirus means for complex patient populations moving forward

-- How Nizhoni Health CEO Joe McDonough built his company around acute mental illness

-- Why Nizhoni remains bullish on its growth strategy despite industry headwinds

-- And more!

EvergreenHealth Home Care has more experience dealing with the coronavirus than any other agency in the country. It’s been battling the COVID-19 virus since February, when the first positive case popped up in the Seattle area, where the home health provider is based.

In this episode of Disrupt, you’ll hear from Brent Korte, chief home care officer at EvergreenHealth. Korte shared his organization’s story, as well as lessons learned and advice for other home health agencies.

Listen to this episode of Disrupt to learn:

-- How Evergreen is dealing with LUPAs, low therapy utilization and PDGM amid COVID-19

-- Why the provider’s PPE and staffing protocols are constantly changing

-- What Korte wishes he had done differently

-- And much more

National Association for Home Care and Hospice President Bill DombiThe United States — now with more confirmed cases than all but two countries — has hit a critical juncture in the uphill battle against the coronavirus. But home- and community-based health care providers are still left fighting for more support.

Home Health Care News recently caught up with National Association for Home Care & Hospice (NAHC) President William A. Dombi for an update on where home health and home care providers currently stand amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

Listen to this episode of Disrupt to learn:

-- What CMS is doing to help home health providers

-- Why industry advocates say more support is needed

-- How in-home care will continue to play a major role throughout the COVID-19 pandemic

-- And more!

Headquartered in the Boston area, HouseWorks is growing -- and fast. Private equity backing has helped. And so has the company’s unique business model, a blend of home care and home modification.

For this episode of Disrupt, we caught up with the leader of HouseWorks -- founder and CEO Andrea Cohen -- to learn about that growth strategy and how it will play out in 2020. During our conversation, we also touched on how HouseWorks has established an extensive partnership network with senior living operators.

Listen to this episode of Disrupt to learn:

-- How HouseWorks has built a business around home-modification services

-- Why Cohen got into home-based care in the first place

-- How HouseWorks sources 50% of clients from the senior living market

-- And more!

Home health and personal care aides are often referred to as “the eyes and ears” of the U.S. health care system, but they’re still infrequently used in care teams.

Changing that is going to take some hard work and dedicated advocacy, according to Dr. Robyn Stone, senior vice president of research at LeadingAge and director of the LeadingAge LTSS Center at UMass Boston.

Home Health Care News recently caught up with Dr. Stone to learn more about the evolution of care teams and how in-home care aides fit into health care’s future. During the conversation, the noted researcher also shared best practices for recruiting and retention, common pain points for home health and home care providers alike.

Listen to this episode of Disrupt to learn:

-- Why care teams often fail to leverage home health and personal care aides

-- How providers can improve upon recruiting in a difficult labor market

-- What signs suggest in-home care workers are ready to leave their employer

-- And much more!